Kamen Rider Liger
by Kamen Rider Bushido
Summary: The very first, official, story featuring Kamen Rider Liger. Any anime characters that may appear in this story do not belong to me.
1. Roar of the Liger

**Kamen Rider Bushido: OK, I'm sure many of you probably expected this. But hey, this is what I do and I enjoy doing it. There will be some differences, so please look forward to those. Anyway, I've had help in this, so I wanna thank Kamen Rider Chrome for his support and assistance in getting this done. And this is just the beginning...**

**Tail 1 - Roar of the Liger**

Yūji was just getting up for school and today was looking like a great day. The sun was shining, the birds were chirping, and it didn't look like there was any chance of rain without a cloud in the sky.

A perfect start for the day. He was already feeling energized and ready to tackle any challenges he was going to face.

_OK, you're probably wondering who I am, right? Well, I should start by telling you who I am, right? The name's Yūji, Fudō Yūji. I'm 18 years old and I attend Neo Domino High. Today's a good day and it's time for my ass to get ready for school. So get the hell outta my room, ya pervs. Well, the ladies can stay and watch me get ready._

* * *

Yūji was walking through the halls of Neo Domino High, hand-in-hand with a girl that was shorter than him by a few inches. It was a young girl with snow-white hair, ice-blue eyes and almost pale skin.

_OK, if you're wondering, this is my sister, Yuki. She's my twin, with me being born first by about a minute or something like that. But anyway, my sister is pretty shy around a lot of people. One of the few people she really talks to is me, to be honest. But Yuki is a good girl, no joke. She's just shy is all._

"YŪJI!" a cry rang through the air before the twins side-stepped a flying blur before it crashed into a tall and muscular young man, topping at 7'8", with short black hair and fair skin, his mouth covered by a black and red checkered scarf; his eyes being gray as he looked down at the boy who crashed into him. "Nice catch...Chiaki," the boy groaned as he weakly gave a thumb's up. His brown hair was spiked, with his blue eyes having a shine that resembled that of a little kid.

_That's Yokoshima. He's...hyper, for lack of a better word. He's a good guy, just likes to bounce all over the walls when he can._

**"No problem,"** Chiaki signed, holding a wooden sign, with his riding on the sign in thick black ink.

_OK, the big guy there is Chiaki. He's an aspiring artist and he's real quiet, to the point of passing for a mute. Basically, he can't talk. Why, you ask? Took a vow of silence. Why? I dunno. Never really asked; never questioned it._

"That's what you get for running at me so fast all the time, Yokoshima," Yūji sighed.

"You don't have to be so cold all the time," Yokoshima pouted.

"It's you and your nonsense that gets you in trouble, Yokoshima," another guy reprimanded. He was a fair-skinned young man, with a military-style haircut, and coal-black eyes.

_This guy here is Shogo. He's kind of a military buff and he knows his stuff. He's part of the school's discipline committee and he makes sure nobody gets in trouble. Well, he's one of them anyway._

"What do you expect, Shogo? It's Yokoshima," another boy smirked as he strummed his guitar. His black hair was slicked back while his green eyes were trained on his guitar.

_Now this cool cat is Daichi. He loves music and animals. He's wicked on the guitar; we practice together in the music room and try out different lyrics and whatnot. I'm good with electric, piano, and I can sing (not bragging). One thing though... Daichi's not too fond of girls. But with a bitch of a sister like his, I can understand why. She's hot, but she's a bitch._

"Yūji-kun!" a voice called as the owner jumped into his arms, with Yūji catching her. She was a dark-skinned girl, shorter than Yuki by an inch or two, with semi-long, pepper-black, hair in twin pigtails and hazel eyes.

_This adorable bunny that likes to hug me a lot is Michiru. She's actually from Okinawa, sent here for a better education. She's on the gymnastics team and she's working on becoming a contender in the Olympics, and that's a big goal. But I think she can do it. She's pretty agile and she's really flexible; I know._

"Good to see you, Michiru," Yūji smiled. "And don't worry, I'll be with you at practice later."

"Thank you," she beamed.

"Remember to mind your etiquette, Michiru," another girl advised. Her skin was almost pale, like Yuki's, and she had chocolate brown eyes behind a pair of stylish, narrow glasses. Her hair was a rich black and cut to a short chin-length style with spider hairclips. Her hair also sported red streaks which she claimed were natural. In her hand was an iPad.

_That's Hana. She's the Vice-President for the Student Council. She's real serious, but she's nice. She tends to be quiet, often lost in thought as she works on her iPad. She's cute too, no mistake about it. She just tends to be more serious, even around us. I'm trying to get her to loosen up a little. At least she's informal around friends._

"But Yū-kun is so warm~" Michiru sighed dreamily as she relaxed into his chest.

"OK, Michiru, that's enough or else Hana will get mad," Yūji warned.

Hana sputtered and blushed fiercely as she demanded, "What do you mean 'mad'?!"

"Told ya," Yūji snickered.

"Alright, you slackers," Shogo sighed as he grabbed Yokoshima and Daichi by the collars and dragged them along. "Class is gonna start soon!"

Daichi grumbled, "And you're dragging me why...?"

"Yeah, knock it off...!" Yokoshima whined, "My soles are gonna burn if you drag my feet long enough!"

Yūji chuckled as he, his sister and Chiaki watched the three leave. "They never learn... By the way, anybody seen Misato?"

* * *

Male students were strewn about a courtyard with a girl standing victoriously in the center of it all. Her red school jacket was open, revealing her black crop top that showed off her flat, toned, stomach and prominent chest. The top of her navel was pierced was pierced with a curved barbell and below her navel was a solid red polygon, shaped like a bat's head. On her feet were a pair of black, knee-high, leather boots and black thigh-high socks. Her skirt was red and reached down to mid-thigh, with a sliver of the creamy skin of her thighs. Her eyes we're emerald green, and her long, wavy, amethyst hair reached the middle of her back.

She unwrapped a lollipop and popped the treat into her mouth, leaving the stick to dangle outside. It made her look like she was smoking but she wasn't the type to put those 'suicide sticks' in her mouth. A delicious lollipop was a much better alternative. She just had to brush her teeth more often afterwards, but it was worth it.

"Yummy...cherry..." she purred. "Stupid boys never learn~"

"That's because you're ruthless," Yūji remarked as he approached the scene.

The girl turned to see Yūji approaching and smile widely. "Hey, Yuji-boya."

_Yeah, this is Misato. She's a firecracker; that's the best, simple, thing I can describe her as. She likes ditching classes and I don't think her dad would be happy. Oh, he works at the S&T Building too. Thankfully, he wasn't in at the time of the attack._

"You just can't avoid a fight," he mused, "And you never go easy on anyone."

"If I went easy on them, they'll never get the message," Misato argued. "You need to pound it into them until they learn."

"And what if they keep coming?" he asked.

"Then I'll pound them again until they won't even think of coming at me," Misato stated. "So, do you have anything for me, Yūji-boya?"

"Just to tell you the bell is about to ring," said Yūji.

"Like I care about classes," scoffed Misato.

"Well, maybe you don't, but your dad sure does," Yūji grinned. Misato grimaced. Her father always kept telling her to take her education seriously.

"OK, fine, just don't go ratting me out to my Daddy," Misato scowled as she went off. But, as her back was turned to him, she smiled. Yūji did care about her.

"Well, I better head to class too," said Yūji and he looked at all the sprawled boys, "I better get the medical committee here too to tend to these guys."

* * *

Meanwhile, in an undisclosed location, a figure in the shadows with red eyes was being addressed by a disembodied voice, "_**Do you understand your mission?**_"

"Yes," the red-eyed figure answered.

"_**Then you understand the penalty for failure."**_

"I do, My Lord."

"_**Then go, and perform your task, BLACK 13."**_

"Yes, My Lord."

* * *

Classes went by quick, with short breaks in-between and a break for lunch. Michiru kept trying to feed Yūji during lunch while Hana kept chiding her for acting inappropriately. Misato, of course, monopolized Yūji's left as Michiru had his right. Lunches were always spent out on school grounds, on the grass, under the shade of the old cherry tree. It was Yūji's favorite spot and it became a spot for him to take a nap or to have lunch. There was just something about that spot that made Yūji feel calm.

After school, Yūji had to go and see his father about something.

* * *

Yūji was standing in front of the Neo Domino's Department of Science & Technologies Building. His hair was short, spiky with many of his bangs spiked and styled to look like horns, lightly tanned skin, and deep blue eyes. He wore a jean jacket over a sleeveless black shirt and a pair of jeans with black sneakers.

'_Yeah, this is gonna rock for sure,'_ the youth thought with excitement, while still keeping his cool.

"Good afternoon, Fudō-kun!"

"Someone's sure looking excited!"

"Looking good, kid!"

Greetings like that were given to the boy as he accepted them with confidence. He was familiar with the workers here, as they had each worked with the boss at one point or another.

The young man approached the counter and greeted the clerk, "Hey there, Cherise. Dad around?"

"Upstairs, same as usual," she smiled.

Yūji nodded as he made his way to the elevator, alone, as he entered it and hit a button as its doors shut and went up to the top floor.

The elevator stopped on the top floor an opened its doors, with Yūji exiting the elevator and seeing scientists working on different projects on the floor. Lights from computers and sounds from tools filled the air as everyone was at some form of work.

"Fudō-kun!"

"How's it goin', kiddo!"

"Doin' fine, everybody," Yūji greeted, "Don't let me slow you down."

The scientists laughed as they returned to their workstations. Their boss's son was something else alright.

That's when a man turned; his skin a shade or two darker than Yūji's, with the same eyes and hairstyle, except his highlights were gold instead of red, and on the left side of his face was his marker (If you've seen 5D's, then you already know what it looks like).

"Good to see you, Yūji," Yūsei greeted as he and his son shared a handshake and hug.

"Always good to see you, Dad," the son returned.

They released each other and Yūsei popped his neck to get the stiffs out. "So, I'm sure you're excited about today."

"Got that right," Yūji grinned, "Spent a whole year designing this stuff. This place is the only one capable of bringing it all to life."

"It took some time," Yūsei nodded, "But I think you're gonna like how we put it together. Let's go." And he & his son made their way to his office.

* * *

"ETA to target: 10 minutes," a voice in the shadows reported.

"_Good. Prepare for combat,"_ a voice ordered over the radio.

"Understood."

* * *

A huge door to a huge safe opened slowly as the two Fudōs entered inside. Inside, hovering over a pedestal was what looked like a belt. The strap was black, the buckle itself was white and the front was framed by a pair of golden fangs. In the center was a red, circular lens. The buckle also featured a kind of slit on the top and also had buttons. Also attached to the belt was a black deck box. On the right of the buckle was a keyhole.

"So, this is it," Yūji breathed. While he didn't show it, he was very excited to test out his completed project.

Yūsei nodded, "It took us about two years to put everything together, but if this works then all our hard work will be well worth it. A transformation system bestowing armor onto the wearer, providing sophisticated weapon systems, high-tech communications software, and full-armor protection. I think you've outdone yourself this time, Yūji. To think that you've been working on this since you were still little."

"I was 10, Dad," Yūji argued, "All I had was a box of crayons, pencils, color pencils, pens and just drew. _You_ put everything together."

"The fact that you spent almost 6 years drawing everything proves how dedicate you are, Yūji," Yūsei supported. "We made this possible together. Of course, your mother and sister supported you in getting your drawings done."

"Yeah, I guess so," Yūji blushed.

"Come on, let's get ready to test this out," Yūsei beckoned.

***BOOM!***

"Please tell me that was Tozawa with his nacho-cheese bomb," Yūji pleaded hopefully.

Yūsei frowned, "No, that was earlier during lunch. Let's go!"

The father and son left the office and came out to the sight of black-clad men with gas masks shooting down the other scientists.

"What the hell?!" Yūji gaped.

The soldiers heard his voice and turned in his direction, taking aim as they raised their rifles, before they were dropped by gunshots to the head by Yūsei.

"I don't know what's going on," Yūsei frowned, "But I'm putting a stop to this. He dashed forward and fired at his targets, taking out his targets with a single shot with a seeming need to reload.

Yūji was busy helping scientists to the stairwell in order to escape, stopping to check the cameras as he checked each floor and watched as personnel evacuated. "OK, so only this floor was attacked," he muttered, "Who the hell are these guys and what could they possibly..." His eyes widened with realization as he looked down to the belt he carried. "Aw, fuckberries..."

"HAND OVER THAT BELT!"

Yūji looked back and saw soldiers taking aim at him, grimacing as he took cover around a corner to evade gunfire. "Shit, what a day this turned out to be," he grimaced. These guys knew about his project, they wanted it for themselves, and they've hurt innocent people just to get it. OK, _now_ it was go time!

"Guess it's time for a field test," he grinned as he slung the belt on, fastening around his waist via magnetic lock. "OK, let's get wild!" He held a key with a black grip and a white 'Z' on it and stuck it in the keyhole before turning it.

"**ZERO FORM,"** a female, computerized voice called from the belt as a white light burst from the belt's buckle. Yūji was now donned in a black bodysuit with white plating on the sides of the sleeves and thighs. White gauntlets, with armored plating on the back of the hands with black gloves cover Yūji's arms with a pair of gold claws that were folded back on the wrists. The legs are covered by white greaves, with black boots, and gold claws were folded back against his shins that fold down over the boots. White armor covers the torso and the white shoulder pads are blade-like and curved back. Mounted on his right arm was a large double-edged blade attached to a small black and white shield, vertically folded against his forearm and a larger black and white shield was mounted on his left arm. Also, a diamond-shaped long dagger was holstered on his left hip with a shorter blade was holstered on his left hip. Yūji also wore a black helmet with a white, lion/tiger-themed, face plate with gold fangs framing the mouth plate and red eyes. Red nodes rested on the outside of his wrists, knees, elbows, and ankles. On his back is a white cone-like device.

**Music: "Strike Laser Claw" by Otani Kou**

"OK, this is all types of badass," Yūji grinned as he looked down at his hands. He left his cover and charged into battle, the device on his back making a distinct humming sound as green particles of light were being emitted.

"He's activated the belt!" one of the unknown soldiers shouted.

"Kill him and rip it off his carcass!" another shouted.

They began to open fire on Yūji but their bullets didn't seem to do much harm to his armored body.

"My turn," Yūji claimed as he dashed forward. He held his larger shield to defend from the gunfire as he drew his right arm back, the blade swinging around to secure itself as it was now drawn for Yūji to swing and...

***SLASH!***

A single swipe of his blade reduced their weapons to ribbons and they gasped in shock. His blade folding back as he dropped down, Yūji executed a sweep kick that took down the soldiers as he moved on and got back into the lab as more soldiers saw him and aimed. Sighing to himself, Yūji charged ahead as his armor repelled incoming gunfire, punching and kicking at soldiers as he knocked them away with single hits before he jump-kicked another in the face. Another tried shooting him in the back as his armor repelled the bullets before Yūji swung around and smacked the soldier away with his larger left shield.  
Bodies of soldiers were laid out around Yūsei, blood pooling around them, as looked to see his son fighting. "Looks like it's working," he smiled.

"WHOO-HOO-HOO!" Yūji cried in utter delight, "This thing is amazing!" He came to a halt when he was confronted by the enemy leader; the black-armored one. He was different though from the rest despite being clad completely in black. He wore a black bodysuit with matching gauntlets, boots, shoulder pads, and chest plate. Mounted on his back was armor modeled to resemble a wingless cicada with its legs hugging him from behind. Around his waist was a belt which had XIII on the buckle and metal panels on either side. The helmet was sculpted so that the mouth portion resembled insect mandibles and it had red compound eyes and a strip of white metal going down the centre. Set in the centre of the brow were the antennae which made a V-shape together. Hanging from his neck was a black scarf. There were two holsters on his belt, one on either side, each holding a metal cylinder.

His name was BLACK 13.

"I'm guessing you're the man in charge," Yūji assumed.

"You will surrender the belt," BLACK 13 ordered Yūji .

Yūji glared at the leader of the strange group attacking the lab. Bending his knees, he lunged forward. The black-armored fighter suddenly blurred from sight and Yūji was slugged from the side by a brutal backhand. Yūji stumbled and spun around, slashing and swiping at BLACK 13 who effortlessly bobbed and weaved from the new Rider's attacks.

**POW!**

A kick to the jaw sent Yūji flying backwards. Yūji rubbed his chin and got back to his feet. "OK, I admit, you're good, but I've got some tricks of my own."

BLACK 13 grabbed hold the two metal cylinders holstered in his belt and withdrew them. With a flick of his wrist, a four foot long beam of light extended from each cylinder. They were laser swords, which resembled the lightsabers popularized by Star Wars.

"What the fu-?! Really?!" Yūji gaped. BLACK 13 swung and twirled the laser swords, making a buzzing whooshing noise as he circled around Yūji. "Heh, two can play at that game then," he grinned as he drew a pair of similar devices from behind him (his lower shoulders), rectangular in shape, as similar beams of energy (with a rosy pink coloring) extended from them.

The two lunged forward and started swinging, their energy blades clashing due to similar polarities and repelling one another. BLACK 13 swung and made multiple cuts on Yūji's shield, forcing the new Rider to let it go as it popped off his left arm as it flew forward with Yūji's aim. The black warrior cut the shield to pieces before he was peppered with beam fire coming a mounted blaster on Yūji's left forearm. The white Rider followed up with firing from his right shield, which concealed a similar beam-firing weapon that made contact as BLACK 13 took the barrage of blasts. BLACK 13 seemed to shrug off the assault as he stood there. The two then tried to chuck their beam weapons at each other as they collided, leaving them, for the most part, unarmed.

"Well, that was pretty much pointless," Yūji sweatdropped.

"Indeed," BLACK 13 agreed.

Yūji charged forward and drew back his fist as BLACK 13 did the same. Their fists shot forward at the same time. Their fists connected to each other's helmets but it seemed that Yūji's punch was stronger as BLACK 13 was tossed through the air.

"Hah! Take that!" Yūji gloated as BLACK 13 crashed into some equipment. This knocked his helmet loose and as he climbed out of the wreckage, his helmet fell and rolled along the floor to stop at Yūji's feet.  
The newborn Rider froze with a look of shock that was hidden by the helmet, unable to believe what he was seeing. "...Shin?" BLACK 13's face was of a young Japanese male in his teens with short indigo hair that was parted in the middle with two strands sticking out from the top. His eyes were indigo, but they were hollow and vacant of any sort of light. They were emotionless.

"BLACK 13, withdrawing," BLACK 13 spoke into his arm-mounted communicator. "Activate TransMat for extraction."

"Shin, wait!" Yūji ran towards BLACK 13 who vanished in a beam of light. "Shin...?" Confused and horrified, Yūji didn't know what to think. He'd just discovered the identity of the lead assailant and was shocked beyond words.

"Yūji!" Yusei shouted and he came across his armored son.

"Dad?" Yūji asked. He then took off the belt which deactivated the armor.

"What's wrong?" Yūsei asked, noting Yūji's expression.

"I... It's nothing, Dad," he tried to lie. "Just glad you're OK."

"Well, it looks like the belt works for its first impromptu field test, huh?" Yūsei asked.

"Oh, man, it was so sick," Yūji beamed excitedly, "It was like nothing I've ever felt before! I had a such a freakin' rush... I can't even begin to describe it!"

"Well then, I guess it's decided then. We now know that someone's after the belt. It would be wise to put it away for safekeeping, but it looks like it's in good hands," said Yūsei as he put his hand on his son's shoulder, "Kamen Rider Liger."

"Kamen Rider...huh?" Yūji grinned, "Sounds heavy; I like the feel of it. And DNA locks, let's not forget those."

"Well then, Kamen Rider, how about you help your old man clean up this mess?" Yūsei requested.

"Got nothing better to do," Yūji accepted, "We're the only ones here." Yūsei grabbed a broom and tossed it to Yūji.

"Come on, the sooner we start, the sooner we can finish, and the sooner we can get out of here," said Yūsei.

* * *

**Undisclosed Location...**

BLACK 13 stood in the middle of a dark empty room as a spotlight shone on him. Tucked under his arm was his helmet. Before him was a large screen which had the words 'SOUND ONLY' across it. BLACK 13 was being debriefed.

"_**BLACK 13, report."**_

"At 1800 hours, I along with a small task force entered the facility known as the Neo Domino Science and Technology Building. Our mission was to obtain their newest piece of technology designated as the 'Liger System'. The mission was a failure as the Liger System was activated and used to subdue the soldiers. I engaged the Liger System's wearer in Close Quarters Combat and was able to record his combat proficiency."

"_**So, not only did you fail, but a new Rider has been born as well."**_

"Affirmative."

"_**This organization does not tolerate failure. However, in light of your past accomplishments you will be given another chance to rectify this, BLACK 13. Do not fail us again."**_

"I won't, My Lord."

_To Be Continued..._

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: **I know what you're probably thinking. "Oh no, another Yuji Fudo fic by Bushido!" Well, it was our idea and Yuji's pretty versatile. Anyway, this will be the first time Kamen Rider Liger becomes the titular character for a Kamen Rider Fic and not some spinoff. This is gonna focus on KR Liger and his fight against a mysterious organization.


	2. The Truth

**Tail 2 - The Truth**

"We're back," Yūsei called as he and Yūji had come home.

"Yūsei!" Aki called as she rushed to the father and son as Yūsei embraced her. "I heard about what happened... Are you two OK? What happened at the S&T Building?!" She had a slight, yet noticeable bulge of her stomach, indicating that she was already pregnant by a few months.

"We're fine, Aki," Yūsei assured, "Yūji's just shaken up a bit. However, there were some fatalities; it was a terrorist attack." He looked better than his son, at least.

Aki gasped, "How horrible...! And you two are OK?"

Yūsei nodded, "Your son handled the situation pretty well, all things considered."

However, Yūji seemed lethargic, almost pale even, as he seemed lost in thought. He couldn't believe what happened was true; that he was fighting against his own cousin (who disappeared 2 years ago) and turns out to be working for some kind of secret organization.

"Oh, my poor baby," Aki cooed as she hugged Yūji close, "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm OK," he nodded offhandedly, "Not a scratch on me..."

"I'm so glad," she sighed with relief. "You've had a long day. Go get some rest and I'll have dinner ready, OK?" Her son nodded as he retreated to a hallway leading to his room. "Yūsei, are you sure he's OK?"

"He has to work some things out," Yūsei informed.

"Something else happened, didn't it?"

"Yes, but I can't say right now," he sighed. "He needs to figure things out on his own before he can open up. Give him some time."

Yūsei had too noticed 'Shin' when his helmet was removed. The boy who had been gone, his nephew, for two years had returned; but he had returned under the strangest of circumstances. He and his son needed to figure out what exactly was going on and who is responsible for the disappearance of a member of their family. His brother-in-law, Shōtarō, had dedicated many of his resources into finding his lost son. Yūsei's sister, Shiori, had been especially worried over the disappearance of her son.

* * *

Yūji sighed as he dropped onto his soft bed, looking up at the ceiling, as he tried to process the events of today.

_This bites... It's been two years and he shows up now...? It's gotta have something to do with those guys Shin was with. They must be the ones who took him! That's gotta be it! How else can I explain Shin being gone for two years when he never said anything about leaving! Poor Auntie Shiori... She's been worried sick about him for 2 years, so much so that she hasn't written a book since he disappeared. And Uncle Shō hasn't been any better off either. Something about this stinks, and I'm gonna find out what the hell's going on! Shin, what the hell happened to you...?_

Three puffs of smoke materialized over Yūji's head, clearing to reveal a pair of miniature humanoids. One looked like a middle-aged man with semi-long gray hair and dressed in black, his eyes closed while he was smoking a cigarette. The other was a female with strawberry-pink hair and closed eyes as well. The third was another girl, her hair blond and eyes red as she only smiled. The oddity of them was that they all had cat ears and a tail. They were Yūji's conscience: Neko-Chaos, Neko-Destiny, and Neko-Bubbles.

"Things aren't going well for you, Yūji," the Neko-Chaos stated.

Neko-Bubbles nodded rapidly with an enthusiastically intoned, "Un-Un-Un! (Yeah-Yeah-Yeah!)"

"I can see that," Yūji retorted while staring at his ceiling.

"Two brothers, forced to duel against each other over morals and tribulations," Neko-Destiny described poetically, "How heartbreaking~"

The blond cat-sprite nodded again with a, "Un-Un-Un!"

"Some consciences you three are," Yūji grumbled, "Not even helpful..."

A knock was heard at his door and Yūji sat up to call, "Who?"

"It's me, Onii-sama," a soft voice spoke before the door opened, revealing it to be Yuki.

"Hey, Yuki," Yūji greeted.

Yuki said nothing as she crawled onto the bed and joined her brother, lying next to him as they stared up at the ceiling. "Are you alright...?"

"For the most part, yeah," Yūji nodded, "Not a scratch on me."

"That's what you say," Yuki spoke up as she slid her hand under Yūji's shirt, feeling his heartbeat, and climbing on top of him as she placed her forehead against Yūji's. "However, your head and your heart are burdened... You miss Shin, don't you?"

Yūji sighed in defeat. Nothing could get passed Yuki. She had both brains from their parents and their mother's beauty; an amazing combination. It was true, Yūji had missed Shin since the incident two years ago.

* * *

_2 years ago..._

"_Good luck, Shin," Yūji said to his cousin of 15 as he was heading off to take the entrance exam at Neo Domino High. _

"_I don't need luck," Shinichi bragged as he tapped his forehead. "I've been cramming for this exam nonstop. I got all I need to know right here."_

"_And my tutoring has nothing to do with it, huh?" questioned Yūji. "Hey, are you sure you don't want me to send you there. You know my bike has seating for two."_

"_I'll just take the bus," said Shinichi. "I'll be able to catch it if I leave now."_

_Shiori hugged her son, "Good luck, Shin-chan!" She kissed her son on the cheek._

"_Kaa-chan, yamette kudasai!" frowned Shinichi in embarrassment, a blush on his cheeks. Shiori let her son go and watched him as he ran, heading for the bus stop. _

* * *

The bus never reached its destination. In fact it had been found after a tunnel it went through collapsed. There were some casualties and survivors, but Shinichi wasn't listed as either. He wasn't on the bus but according to the bus' security tape he had boarded the bus. He just never got off.

"You're right, I do miss him," Yūji admitted. "I should've insisted on taking him to school myself."

"It's not your fault, Onii-sama," Yuki insisted. "Shin wanted to go on his own."

"Then why the hell do I still feel guilty?"

"Because you have a big heart, Onii-sama," Yuki smiled softly as she laid on top of Yūji. "A big heart, capable of caring for many. It's one of the things I love about you, Onii-sama..."

Yuki's encouragement served to make Yūji smile a little, instilling some confidence as he smiled at her. "Thanks, Yuki. I know you're just looking out for me."

"Of course, Onii-sama," Yuki welcomed as she nuzzled her brother. "I'd do anything for you..."

"Uh...Yuki, too close," Yūji sweatdropped.

"We are always close," she countered.

"This is a little _too_ close," he retorted.

"Don't care," she dismissed as they stared into each other's eyes. She could see that Yūji was hiding something, but she chose not to pressure him and rolled off of him. "We will find him, Onii-sama," Yuki promised.

"Yeah," he nodded.

* * *

Yūji yawned as he and his sister made their way to class, the brother yawning as he was still feeling groggy.

_Dammit, not a wink of sleep... Those bastards really fucked up my daily motions. Yesterday was supposed to be a quick test, come home for dinner, get homework done and get some sleep... Been thinking about Shin all night... Whoever those guys are and whatever they did to him, they're gonna pay. Count on it._

"EARTH TO YŪJI!"

He received a whack on the head with a newspaper, sputtering and jumping in his seat as he looked up at a girl. She was a blonde, with dark-blue eyes, and was dressed accordingly in the school uniform.

"Sorry about that, chief," Yūji apologized, "Guess I haven't gotten enough sleep..."

_The blonde standing there is Milly Ashford. She runs the Student Council and she's...eccentric. That's about the only word I can use to describe her. But despite her quirks, she's really cool. She takes care of us whenever we're in a jam and she just asks for us joining the Council in return. We did, and here we are. Yokoshima and the others are in the council too, with Hana being the Vice-President. We're the only members here, to be honest, using a separate building for the Student Council. And by the way, this is one of the few places Misato enjoys being at in school._

"Don't call me chief," Milly warned. "Call me 'Ms. President'."

"Right, Ms. President," sighed Yuji.

"So, everyone, as I was saying, I was thinking of organizing a Costume Party for Halloween," said Milly. "Anyone else has any suggestions?"

"We could put a band together and play some spooky tunes," Daichi suggested.

Yokoshima raised a hand and blurted out, "Bobbing for candied apples!"

"How about a pumpkin carving contest?" Michiru supplied.

"...We could use the entire day to do as many events as possible," Yūji mused. "A band towards the end of the night... Bobbing for apples could be in the morning or afternoon, same for the pumpkin carving. No harm in wanting to do everything, right?"

"At least someone's using their head," Hana smiled.

"Hey, looks like Hana's got a thing for thinkers," Misato teased.

"You know, we could also have all the classes create their own haunted house attraction," said Shogo.

Chiaki signed, **"Wouldn't that be too many haunted houses to keep track of?"**

"Yukinojou-san has a point," said Milly. "Besides, it'll be too redundant if every class is doing a haunted house."

"Then why not convert the old abandoned school building into a haunted house?" Shogo asked. "I mean, it's not being used and I'm sure the school won't mind if we use it to create an authentic haunted house experience."

"I bet we can get a couple of classes to help with that," Daichi nodded.

"Oh, and a dance! There has to be a big dance," Michiru suggested. "Oh, it'll be romantic~!"

"Remember, Michiru, it's for Halloween, not Valentine's Day," Hana reminded.

"It could still be romantic," Michiru countered, "In a creepy kind of way..."

"I want to dance...with Onii-sama," Yuki sighed as she hugged his arm.

"Me too!" Michiru agreed.

Yokoshima spoke up, "See? Need I provide more proof that Yūji's a playboy?"

"Now, now," Milly called, "Instead of arguing, we can all dance with Yūji!"

"Pass," Daichi denied. Chiaki nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, dancing with a guy ain't my style," Yokoshima nodded.

Misato heard this and snickered, "What style?"

Hana was blushing, keeping quiet as she imagined dancing with Yūji before she shook the image from her mind.

Yokoshima decided to switch to a new topic as he asked, "So, you guys heard about what happened at the Science Building?"

"Scientists were attacked by some unknown terrorist group, as said by the local police and newscasts," Hana summarized.

"Crazy shit," Daichi frowned. Chiaki's nodded in agreement.

"Weren't you there yesterday, Yūji-kun?" Michiru asked.

"I just went to check up on Dad and his work when those freaks trashed the place," Yūji half-lied. He wasn't planning on anyone know that he had just fought against his cousin that had been missing for a whole two years.

"Oh my!" gasped Milly. "Did anyone get hurt?"

"Nothing short of maybe bruises, cuts and whatnot," Yūji stated, "...Maybe a bullet wound or two... But Dad and I took care of things. We managed to fend them off." He was surprise-glomped by Milly as he got a face-full of the blonde's bountiful chest.

"Oh, I would be so heartbroken if my faithful Number 2 would have gotten hurt~!" she cried.

Yokoshima could only stare at the scene and ask, "Why do I feel so...envious?"

"Meh," Daichi shrugged.

"You just lack discipline," Shogo told Yokoshima.

"Ms. President, please behave more professionally," Hana lectured.

"You were worried too," Milly told her. "So come and get in on this!"

"Me too!" Michiru jumped in and hugged Yūji.

"Me too," Yuki said as she hugged her brother.

"Hey, don't leave me out," Misato grinned as she hugged Yūji from behind and felt up his chest, grinning to herself as she fondled him.

"Hey, knock it off!" Yūji demanded.

"Lucky bastard," Daichi snickered.

"Just be glad your sister isn't here," Shogo admitted. Daichi just shivered, trying to get the image of his sister hitting on Yūji out of his head.

* * *

After school, Yūji went to visit his Aunt Shiori who lived in a house in the residential area of the city. Pulling over, he removed his helmet and rang the doorbell.

"_Who is it?"_ a voice came out of the intercom.

"It's me, Yūji," he answered.

"Oh, come on in," said Shiori and the gate slid open automatically.

Yūji's Aunt Shiori was a famous authoress while his Uncle Shōtarō was a police detective in the Neo Domino City Police Department.

The door opened and Shiori smiled as she saw her nephew. "Konnichiwa, Yūji-kun," she beamed before hugging him. He returned the hug. She was a woman in her mid-thirties, her long, indigo hair draping down her back like a curtain with her bright, matching, indigo eyes. She had on a pair of circular glasses and a pair of antenna-like hairs stuck out on the top of her hair.

When Shinichi had gone missing, she'd been devastated to the point that she could no longer write a new book. The drive had gone away just like Shinichi.

Yūji entered with Shiori and he spotted a toddler sitting in the middle of the living room with toys. "Yū!" the baby cried out as he saw Yūji. He had short indigo hair and matching eyes like his mother. "Up! Up!" he bounced as he reached up for Yūji.

"Hey there, Shō-chan," Yūji grinned as he picked Shō up. Shō was Shiori's second child and he was 1 and 2/3 years old. Shiori had been 5 months pregnant the day Shinichi had gone missing.

Shiori almost had a miscarriage when she learnt that Shinichi had gone missing. She had been miserable and anxious, waiting for some kind of news, which she hoped was good.

What she didn't know was that Yūji had news of her son's whereabouts. However, how could he tell her that he not only found her son, but he was now some kind of terrorist?

Yūji had been visiting Shiori for the past two years to look after her. She needed emotional support from her family. Even her fans had been sympathetic.

Yūji needed to know more about what was going on. That would mean getting his hands dirty.

It was time to give the seedy underworld a visit.

* * *

**Satellite District**

"Hey I don't know nothin'," denied Kimura the Rat. He wore a grey hoodie with dirty jeans and sneakers. He wore a cap too. His short hair was dark and he had ocean-blue eyes. He wore his hood up.

Yūji wanted information and Kimura was the type of guy who knew all about dirty dealings in the criminal underworld and willing to share information for the right price.

"Sure you do," Yūji insisted, "You know everything. Or do you just brag all day and night about your supposed flawless information network?"

"Look, dude, my info is always for sale but there is no price you'd be willing to pay for this kind. You're better off not knowing," Kimura warned. "If you value your life or your family, you'll forget all about it."

Yūji's eyes narrowed as he glared at Kimura, "Unfortunately, my family is involved, Kimura. Whoever attacked the S&T Building earlier did something to my cousin, and I'm gonna find out who they are and make them pay. I came to you out of faith, but I could just leave now and get information that may be even more reliable than yours."

"Yūji, dude, if you really wanna know, these guys call themselves "Shadow." That's all I'm telling you, man. Because I like you, you should stay clear from them. I'm sorry about your cousin, but if he's involved with these guys then you should forget about it. You don't get away from guys like them, at least not alive."

"First off, thanks for the tip," Yūji grinned. "Secondly, family's involved, so I won't be giving up anytime soon. Oh, and don't worry, as far as anyone's concerned, I don't know you." He paid Kimura for the tip and walked away.

"Hey, I'll make sure to bring flowers to your funeral," Kimura remarked as Yūji walked away, snickering as Yūji flipped him off.

* * *

Kimura the Rat's tip may not hold much substance. "Shadow" could mean anything. At least it was a start. Yūji felt he was getting closer to the truth. He knew his cousin would not have joined a group if terrorists willingly. The kid was passionate but not violent.

Yūji remembered helping Shinichi prepare for the exam. They had spent weeks preparing for every conceivable topic and question imaginable. Unfortunately, the accident happened and only Shinichi's belongings were found on the bus.

Yūji kept the deck with him, knowing Shinichi would want it back.

As Yūji was speeding along the road, he noticed a black bike tailing him. The motorcyclist was dressed in an all-black, armored, riding suit and the helmet he wore masked his entire face with a black visor. The bike then sped up to race alongside Yūji's. The rider turned to look at Yūji and he rose up his visor to reveal his face. Yūji's eyes widened and he nearly lost control of his bike. "Shin!?" Shinichi pulled his visor down over his face and sped off. "Shin! Dammit...!" he shifted gears and followed after the biker.

* * *

Yūji followed him until he reached an empty lot. Shinichi was still straddling his bike and wearing his helmet as he waited for Yūji to arrive. Yūji pulled his motorcycle over and regarded his cousin.

2 years...after two years...Yūji would finally be able to speak with his cousin. Maybe he would get some answers.

"Shin, what the hell is going on?" he demanded. "Why are you in that getup, and who the hell put you up to this!?"

Yūji got an answer he didn't expect as Shinichi removed his helmet, "Who are you addressing?"

"You! Who the fuck else!?" Now things were getting even weirder for him before Yūji noted the blank look in his eyes. "OK, this is getting me nowhere..."

"My designation is BLACK 13, and by the command of my Great Leader, I order you to surrender the Liger System," Shinichi demanded.

"Ha, tough nuts," Yūji grinned, "But the belt's sticking with me, and there's no way you're getting your hands on it!"

"Then it appears that I must force you to relinquish it," said Shinichi as he dismounted. He put his hand against his metal belt buckle and called, "Henshin." He split the belt buckle open to reveal the XIII in the centre which flashed.

A wireframe appeared around Shinichi as pieces of armor materialized before connecting to his body. The helmet was the final component to form as it covered his head and the red eyes flashed.

"Transformation: Complete," BLACK 13 declared as he tugged lightly on his scarf.

"...OK, that wasn't half bad," Yūji admitted. He got down on one knee, eyes trained on BLACK 13, as he dig into his bag and fished out the Liger belt, slinging it onto his waist and pulling out the Zero Card. "Let's get wild," Yūji declared as he slotted in the card.

**"ZERO FORM!"** the belt called.

BLACK 13 watched as the armor formed on Yūji's body, effectively transforming him into Kamen Rider Liger.

"Hehe, I don't think I could ever get tired of that," Liger Zero grinned.

"Activate: **Slash Sonic**," said BLACK 13 and blades of energy slid out of his wrists. "Activate: **Acceleration**." Insect wings made of energy burst out of his back, shining brightly. "Initiate Attack," said BLACK 13 and he blurred out of sight with his speed. Sparks exploded across Liger Zero's chest as he was struck.

"Ow... OK, that was your only freebie," Liger growled. He analyzed his opponent-his cousin-and concluded that the energy wings had something to do with his speed. BLACK 13 deactivated the wings and rushed at Liger Zero with both his energy blades, swinging furiously but with a purpose. As he got in close, Yūji reached behind and drew his Beam Sabers, the energy blades clashing as both fighters evaded and swung at each other.

"Shin, you have to listen to me! Let me help you!" shouted Liger. "But you have to tell me what happened to you!"

"My name is BLACK 13, and I am a soldier of the organization," answered BLACK 13. He launched a kick that sent Liger staggering backwards. Recovering, Liger lunged and struck with his beam sabers, only to meet an invisible shield.

"Activate: **Over Shield**," intoned BLACK 13.

"Huh, that happened," Liger paused.

"My Over Shield blocks your attack," said BLACK 13. "It means that I will take no damage."

_'That could be trouble,'_ Yūji acknowledged mentally.

"Activate: **Harmonics**," announced BLACK 13 and his armor glowed. Suddenly, duplicates of BLACK 13 surrounded Liger. A total of 13 of them now stood in a circle around Liger. The thirteen BLACK 13's then attacked, striking at Liger with intent to kill.

Liger took a quick glance around and reached back, drawing two more saber handles that generated short energy blades as he chucked them ahead, embedding them into the heads of two BLACK 13's, causing them to explode into particles of light. He then drew his GN Daggers and dashed to the side as he cut through another clone, spinning around to chuck the smaller dagger at another BLACK 13. He looked up and saw another BLACK 13 coming down on him as he raised his shielded GN Beam Rifle and blasted him to bits.

The remaining BLACK 13(s) fell black and the real one commanded, "Activate: **Burst**." They deactivated their blades and aimed their fists at Liger. Their fists glowed and they fired bursts of energy at the Rider, bombarding him, as he shielded himself.

"OK...new plan," Liger muttered. Data scrolled down the screen behind his mask as he was investigating the Liger System's specs. "Dammit, the rest of the cards haven't been loaded into the system. Guess Dad didn't finish yet. Oh well, I'll have to make do..."

"Surrender and your destruction will be delayed," the BLACK 13's chorused.

"Bite me," Liger sneered. He stuck out his right arm as the GN Sword was drawn.

"Negative," said BLACK 13 as he and his copies and activated their arm blades. "Activate: Acceleration." The wings came out and they rushed at blinding speed.

The GN Drive on Liger's back hummed, emitting green particles of light as he dashed forward. The Rider swung his GN Sword quickly, cutting through the BLACK 13 clones that he flew past as they exploded into light. Liger slid to a halt as he turned to face the remaining, true, BLACK 13.

"Looks like we're evenly matched, Shin," teased Liger. "Like when we were kids and wrestled for fun, I was always the one who pinned you down. But then there were times you pinned me down too." BLACK 13 showed no response except raising his blades up above his head and crossing them together.

"Activate: **Howling Scream**." The blades began to vibrate and generate high frequency, high amplitude sound waves. It was a continuous, widespread sonic burst meant to disorient and knock out opposition.

"Oh, geez..." Liger was definitely feeling the effects as he was starting to lose himself. Meanwhile a tanker truck was driving by and the driver was feeling the effects of the Howling Scream too. He lost control and drove into the empty lot towards BLACK 13, running him over. The truck crashed against some stacked concrete cylinders and the trailer dropped onto its side, landing atop BLACK 13, pinning him down under its weight.

"Shin!" Liger rushed to the truck as he crouched and lifted the trailer slightly as he hooked his leg under BLACK 13's arm to drag him out from under it before dropping the trailer. He then rushed to the cab and pried the door opened and pulled the trucker out.

BLACK 13 rose up and in confusion asked, "...Why? I'm your enemy. It's not logical for you to save me."

"Cuz you're not my enemy, idiot," Liger growled, "You're my cousin; family!"

"Cousin...family...?" trembled BLACK 13. "No...I'm a soldier of the organization. I'm...I'm your enemy. Your enemy."

"Yeah, keep telling yourself that," Liger countered. "Won't make it anymore true."

"You are my enemy..." BLACK 13 repeated. "I must...I have to..." He dropped to his knees. "My head..." He clutched his helmet and removed it. "What's...happening...? What are these images?"

* * *

"_Wow, the new super hero movie is out now!" a younger, bright-eyed Shinichi exclaimed as he watched the commercial on TV._

"_Actually, there's something you need to know," said Yuji as he flashed a pair of tickets. "Happy birthday, Shin."_

* * *

"_Hey, leave my cousin alone!" Yūji shouted at the bullies beating up on his cousin. He beat them up and sent them running. He offered his hand to Shinichi. "Are you OK?"_

"_Yeah, but I could've taken them," said Shinichi as she took Yūji's hand._

"_Yeah, sure you could've," joked Yūji. "Aunt Shiori is gonna freak when she sees how beat up you are."_

"_Yeah, definitely," said Shinichi. "I really am weak, aren't I?"_

_"Nah, you just need help is all," Yūji smiled._

"_But I really wanna win my own battles one day," said Shinichi._

* * *

"_Dammit, so close!" Shinichi cursed as the game ended with Yūji as winner._

"_Well, you kinda had me cornered towards the end," Yūji sighed. "It shows you're getting better."_

"_Yeah, but I'm not good enough if I can't ever beat you in a fighting game!"_

_"Did you forget that you've beaten more than half the class last week?" Yūji reminded._

* * *

"Who...who are you...?" BLACK 13 questioned Yūji. "Why...why do I see you...in my mind...?"

"**BLACK 13, you have been compromised. Abort the mission and return to base,"** a voice ordered from his wrist communicator.

"Roger..." BLACK 13 answered but he hesitated as he looked at Yūji before vanishing in a flash of light.

"Dammit," Liger sighed before removing his belt. He went over to the downed driver and helped him onto his feet as the two made their way to get medical assistance.

Still, Shinichi did show a response. He remembered Yūji, which meant that he was still in there somewhere. He was like a prisoner in his own body, and he had to get him out. However, it was time the truth came to light.

* * *

"What's the matter, kid?" Crow asked.

"You haven't been this serious since that time you got over that hangover," Jack quipped.

Yūji had called as parents, aunt, and uncles into the living room, with his sister Yuki standing beside him. Shōtarō had come home when he was called by Yūji when he sounded serious over the phone. Shiori was cradling Shō in her arms, the baby giggling as he was bounced in her grasp.

"OK, there's honestly no easy way to say this," Yūji sighed. "As you all know, the Science & Tech building was attacked a few days ago. Well, the one leading the group was a guy calling himself BLACK 13." He then revealed Liger's helmet, the eyes glowing, as it projected an image that revealed BLACK 13's true face, shocking everyone else in the room as they stared, slack-jawed.

Crow decided to speak up and asked, "Anyone seeing what I'm seeing...?"

"Seeing... Still having trouble believing," Jack admitted.

"Is that...Shin?" Aki asked. "Our Shin?"

"Believe me, I still have trouble believing it," Yūji admitted.

Shiori was starting to cry as Shōtarō held her, "What... What could've happened to him?!"

"No idea, but I'm betting the bastards that he's hangin' with have something to do with it," said Yūji. "He's been brainwashed but earlier, when we fought, he was starting to remember."

Shōtarō frowned, "So, he's being used...and they trained him to become one of their operatives."

"And they somehow knew about the Liger System," Yūji added. "And they sent Shin to steal it."

"My son..." Shiori sobbed.

"Shiori-Ma, it'll be OK," assured Yūji. "I'm going to save him and bring him back home. That's a promise," he swore.

* * *

In the organization's base, BLACK 13 was currently undergoing an examination. He was lying on a cold metal table as a machine was used to scan him. As he rested, he wondered about what had happened. He wondered what those memories her. He wondered who Yūji was. And most of all he wondered who himself was.

_To be Continued..._

* * *

**KRB: OCs and anime characters belong to their respective owners. That's all I really have to say...so there.**


	3. Welcome Home

**Tail 3 - Welcome Home**

**"Another failure, BLACK 13? This really does not look good for you."**

"I apologize, My Lord. I experienced a minor malfunction in the midst of combat."

**"Don't let it happen again. You've already received 2 strikes. A third one would not benefit you."**

"I know, My Lord."

**"It appears that this Liger System seems too much for you. Next time you confront the Liger System's user, you will be sent with two MechBeasts to accompany you. Is that understood?"**

"Yes, My Lord.

* * *

Over a week went by since Yūji's last confrontation with Shinichi and the Liger Rider hadn't seen or heard from him since. Since that day, Yūji had sworn to bring Shinichi home, even if he had to beat some sense into his cousin. Considering what had happened to him, that was the most likely of scenarios.  
Preparations for the Halloween Party was underway in Neo Domino High and all the students were getting involved. The abandoned school building was being turned into a huge haunted house. They were almost done too. A lot of the students were enthusiastic about scaring the pants off of guests for fun.

"Isn't this exciting?!"

Yūji turned to see Milly, dressed as a black and white cat complete with a set of cat ears and a tail. "That look suits you, Pres."

"I dress to impress," she boasted as she struck a sexy pose, making Yūji blush. "No costume?"

"Couldn't decide," Yūji sighed. He looked off the corner of his eye, seeing his male friends approaching. "Nice look there, Chiaki." he was dressed as Frankenstein's monster.

"Halloween can be fun, no matter what age you are," Daichi mused, dressed up as KISS's Gene Simmons.

"I hear that," Shogo agreed as he was dressed up in military gear.

"Hey, Shogo, you know that you're supposed to wear a costume, right?" Yokoshima questioned. He was dressed up as an armadillo.

The military buff stomped his foot and snapped, "I'm an Army Ranger!"

Yūji looked around and asked, "Anybody seen the girls?" He then let out a yelp as he was grabbed from behind by someone and started sucking on his neck.

It was Misato, dressed as Dracula, as she giggled while running her sharpened fangs along Yūji's neck. "Wish I could taste your blood for real," she mused, "I bet you taste great~"

"Leave Onii-sama alone," Yuki ordered, dressed as a traditional Yuki-Onna.

"Make me, honey," Misato challenged.

"That's enough, you two," Hana stepped in.

Yūji noted that Hana also wasn't in a costume. "No costume too, huh?"

"I...couldn't decide," she blushed as she tried to look away.

"You could dress up as a sexy black widow," Milly suggested.

Hana flustered, "Ms. President, that's too much...!"

"Leave it to me," Michiru beamed as she lifted a bag. She was dressed in a maid costume, "I went out and got one for you!"

"Michiru...!"

Milly nodded, "Good work, Michiru! Now go help Hana change and don't let her escape!"

Michiru did a salute as she grabbed Hana, "Yes, Ma'am! Come on, Hana-chan, let's go make you look pretty!"

"Hey, wait! I did not agree to this! Help! HELP!" Hana screamed as she was dragged away.

"You're merciless, Prez," Yūji mused.

"Thank you," she welcomed proudly.

* * *

"I hate you," grumbled Hana. She was dressed in a skintight black leotard with fishnet stockings and black shoes. On her stomach was the red hourglass mark similar to the one on black widows and on her back were four pairs of spider legs.

"You look good, Hana," Yūji admired.

"Don't look at me like that," Hana blushed in embarrassment.

"Aw, someone's shy," Misato teased.

"And you really have filled out in all the right places since last time, Hana," Milly admired.

"Why do we even have to wear costumes anyway? The Halloween Party isn't until two more days," scowled Hana.

"Just getting into the mood of things," said Milly. "And dressing up is fun!"

_To be honest, I could have come in as Liger, but that would draw too much attention to myself and those guys from before would come and wreck the school like they did the S&T Building. I can't let that happen... And I can't afford to get Milly and the others mixed up in this because of me, and I refuse to let any of them get hurt._

"You just admire the figures of Madam President and the others," Neko-Destiny swooned as she poofed into existence, followed by Neko-Chaos and Neko-Bubbles.

"Ah, young love," Neko-Chaos admired as he puffed his cigar.

"Un-Un-Un!" Neko-Bubbles agreed.

"I swear, if you three were real, I'd drown you," Yūji grumbled before he thought he'd spotted someone familiar out of the corner of his eye. He turned to see only nothing as he stared down the hall. Must've been his imagination...

Daichi noticed the concern in Yūji and asked, "You OK?"

"Yeah... I'm fine," Yūji said offhandedly.

* * *

Two days later, the Halloween Party for Neo Domino High commenced. Students came in their costumes. Some came dressed as their favorite superheroes, others as famous horror icons, and some in whatever costume they liked. The Haunted House attraction made out of the abandoned school building was a huge success. It was scary enough to give guest's their money's worth and not too scary so that they would come back for more.

There were other activities, but the highlight was the Halloween Dance and Costume Contest. Judges among them would decide who had the best costume to win the prize for the night. It was Milly's idea to have the judges hide among the guests so the students couldn't tell who were judges and who weren't.

In the school gymnasium, Milly Ashford took the stage and spoke into the microphone, "Is everyone having fun!?" Flanking her sides were Hana and Yūji.

"YEAH!" the students cheered.

"Well then, here's to a good night and a fun Halloween!" she declared.

Yokoshima was at the buffet table, scarfing down candy. He yelped when he got bonked over the head by "Daichi Simmons."

"You're gonna get sick, idiot," Daichi scolded. Yokoshima stared at Daichi and shrugged before he continued eating candy, with Daichi facepalming.

Yūji found the girls together and asked, "So, who wants to dance first?" He noticed their blushes and he laughed a little. "You all wanted to dance with me, right? No harm in taking turns, no?"

Yuki stepped forward, blushing as she raised her hand with her brother taking it. As much as Yūji constantly denied, he really was a kind of playboy, balancing his time with his female friends and paying as much attention to each of them as possible. Guess he was more like his old man than he cared to admit. What was odd was that Yūji and Yuki were siblings, which neither seemed to have a problem with. Hana was the shy one of the group, though she inwardly enjoyed dancing with Yūji since he was one of the few males she could tolerate. Michiru was the sweetheart, a kind of princess, as she was the sweetest girl anyone could know. Then there was Misato, a kind of rebel that did what she wanted but made sure to go to classes. The only people who seemed to look out for her were her own father and Yūji. Even Milly got some dancing time with Yūji and her second-in-command had no problem with it. She always seemed to do things on a whim and her own way.

Suddenly, the doors burst open as several men clad in black uniforms rushed inside the gymnasium. They were armed with rifles and aiming them at all the students and the teachers chaperoning the party. Hanging from the ceiling was a shadowed figure that let out a shrieking cackle that stunned the students, forcing them to try and cover their ears. The figure dropped down and crouched with its body covered by what looked like a black cloak. It opened up, the cloak actually being a pair of sharp black wings. His entire body was covered in black armor, save for his red biceps, front thighs, calves, and abs were all a bright ruby-red. It's hands and feet were armed with claws and its long ears were silver. In its head were a set of silver jaws and a single, cycloptic, glowing green eye.

"Happy Halloween, kiddies~!" Zabat cackled as he frightened the students. They panicked and ran for the nearest exit, only to see someone blocking it.

At the gym's main entrance, blocking off the main exit, was an insect-like humanoid that struck fear in the students that tried to escape as they backed away. Its armor was a desert-brown and its pincer claws were black. Its four eyes were orange and arranged in a diamond pattern in the center of the helmet ot wore, along with black-clawed mandibles and fangs. What wasn't armored was its abs covered by a black bodysuit, and he had a scorpion-like tail that had a kind of gun barrel for a stinger. "Going somewhere, kids? The party's just getting started."

Yūji's eyes narrowed at what was going on. This couldn't be part of the Halloween Party. He then heard footsteps coming from the stage and his attention was drawn to it as a familiar figure in insect-like black armor stood on stage with the microphone.  
"Aw...fuck me," he grimaced.

"Attention, students of Neo Domino High School," BLACK 13 called, "You are hereby prisoners of our organization. If you wish to survive, you will follow our orders."

Yūji managed to slip away behind the bleachers. He took out his Liger Belt and put it on. "OK, let's get wild."

**"ZERO FORM!"**

Kamen Rider Liger burst out of the bleachers which exploded into pieces as he lunged at the scorpion MechBeast called Guysak. As soon as Guysak saw him, he took aim and fired his tail gun at the charging Rider. Liger raised his large shield and defended from the shots, twisting from the right as he drew his GN Sword and took a swing, hitting Guysak across the stomach and launching him away.

The soldiers raised their rifles and fired, students screaming and ducking, as Liger raised his shield. The GN Sword retracted and Liger aimed his Beam Rifle and fired, peppering the weak goons and taking them out in no time flat.

Yokoshima blinked and asked, "Who is that guy?"

"You're asking me? I've never even seen such a sick-looking costume," Daichi admired.

Michiru looked around worriedly and asked, "Where's Yūji-kun?!"

"He was here a minute ago," Milly blinked.

Hana and Yuki frowned. Yūji was definitely with them up until the soldiers broke in. How did he sneak away from the Student Council and disappear? And as soon as he disappeared, this white-armored fighter appeared out of nowhere. Something was going on...

Liger turned and faced the stage, pointing at BLACK 13, and declared, "OK, I know you just want me, so let's get wild!" He jumped high and came down on BLACK 13, drop kicking the black fighter as they crashed through the stage.

"They fell through the stage," Daichi said.

"We have bigger problems," Misato frowned as she noticed more soldiers surrounding them.

Milly was holding a scared Michiru close while Chiaki popped his neck and Daichi cracked his knuckles, with Shogo pulling out a shotgun (seemingly out of thin air).

Hana pulled out kunai from out of nowhere and glared, "You fools just made a big mistake..." She vanished in an instant as two soldiers lost their heads.

Shogo pumped his shitgun with each blast, killing grunts in close range as he made sure no students were in his line of fire. He definitely knew how to use his shotgun he even swung it around like a club as he whipped incoming soldiers away and did some damage.

Soldiers charged at Chiaki and the giant grabbed them by the necks, slamming their heads together and tossing them away. He may have been silent, but he was plenty strong and could defend himself.

* * *

The power generator room was located under the gym building and that was where Liger and BLACK 13 ended up after falling through the stage. It was there that they continued to clash. Liger was put on the defensive as BLACK 13 seemed to be overpowering him. BLACK 13 was about to run him through with his energy sword only for Liger to dodge at the last second. Instead of the Rider, the blade pierced the generator instead.

That was when BLACK 13 began to scream as he was being electrocuted. The electricity was coursing through his body painfully and one particular implant in his brain was being fried, damaged beyond hope of repair.

* * *

Up in the gymnasium, the power had gone out. The only available lighting though were the Jack-O-Lanterns placed in the gymnasium. Milly Ashford wondered what was going on when she recalled that the school's power generator was located under the gymnasium.

* * *

"SHIN!" Liger called as he rushed to BLACK 13, prying him from the generator and laid him out on his back. "Hang on..." he removed BLACK 13's helmet and administered CPR, pushing down on his chest as he kept listening for a heartbeat. He got what he wanted when Shinichi started coughing uncontrollably, with Yūji hugging him tightly with nothing but relief. "Finally...".  
"...Ani...Aniki?" He was dazed and confused, and a little sore, but he recognized his cousin's voice. "What's...going on...?"

"Don't worry about for now," Yūji whispered, "Just keep breathing; slow and steady..."

He blinked. "Where are we...?" He then took note of his armor. "What am I wearing?" He took note of Yuji's armor as well. "What are _you _wearing?"

"Long story," he dismissed, "No joke..."

"Well, I'd like to hear an abridged version for now," said Shinichi. "So, what the hell is going on?"

"What's the last thing you remember?" Liger inquired.

"I was on the bus, we were going through a tunnel, I heard a loud boom, and then everything went black," Shinichi answered.

"Well, long story short; you've been gone for a while, and now you're a cyborg," Yūji tried to abbreviate.

"OK," said Shinichi, believing Yūji without a second thought or missing a beat.

Liger blinked under his helmet. "Wait, you believe that?"

"You wouldn't lie about something like this," said Shinichi. "And you sound too serious to be joking."

"Well, I don't have all the details behind your disappearance yet," Yūji frowned.

His enhanced hearing picked up something. "Argh! My ears!" He covered them.

"Shit... I forgot about the other one," Yūji frowned.

"People are screaming...they need help..." said Shinichi.

"Right, those guys you were with," Yūji said as he got up. "Only managed to take care of one of them and those goons."

"What guys?" Shinichi asked.

"Oh, you kinda brought along some company to the party," said Yūji. "I'll explain later." Yuji picked up Shinichi's helmet and handed it to him. "Here, you might need this."

"You're gonna fight them, and that suit isn't a costume, is it? It's an actual, real life, suit of high tech power armor," Shinichi assumed.

"We'll talk later," Yūji dismissed. "The students come first."

"Then I'm helping you," said Shinichi as he put the helmet on. "I may not know what the hell is going on, but I'm here now and I want to help."

* * *

Liger and Shinichi returned to the gymnasium, watching as Hana was chucking kunai at Zabat to keep him from a distance.

"Huh, didn't know she was packing," Liger blinked. He turned to his cousin and ordered, "OK, Shin, make some noise."

Shinichi nodded and went to engage the closest target, who just happened to be Zabat. He executed a shoulder tackle, knocking Zabat to the floor. "BLACK 13!?" Zabat shouted in shock.

Shinichi looked sternly at Zabat and his helmet was feeding him instructions. He took hold of the cylinders on his belt and activated them. "Cool, dual lightsabers!" he grinned. "OK, time to go Jedi on your ass!" He ran ahead and leaped, slashing at Zabat wildly as the monster evaded the attack.

"BLACK 13," Zabat growled, "What the hell are you doing?! We're on the same side!"

"Sorry, assmuncher!" Shinichi shot back as he kicked Zabat in the back. "Wrong Number!" He swung again, landing strike after strike upon Zabat who was confused by this turn of events. Spreading his wings, Zabat took off into the air.

Liger went to his friends as they were huddled together. "You all OK?"

"Yeah, for the most part," said Shogo.

"I'm a little confused. Wasn't the guy in black on their side?" Yokoshima inquired. "And who are you, and where the heck did you get that cool suit of armor?"

"Well, shit happens; and as for me, you don't need to know," Liger dismissed. "Secret identity and all..." There was a roar and Liger saw Guysak come charging at him. "...Didn't I just kill you? OK, take cover," he ordered as the students retreated. Guysak swung a claw and Liger grabbed it, turning and lifting the scorpion android and throwing him into a set of bleachers.

"Hey, get back down here!" Shinichi shouted at Zabat who stayed in the air. "That's not fair! I don't even have wings!" Suddenly, his energy wings burst out of his back. "Oh...on second thought..." He took off after Zabat. "You're mine!"

Zabat growled in frustration, "This doesn't make any sense... You're supposed to be with us, not against us!" He dashed forward and flashed his claws, ready to go in for the kill. Shinichi dodged the claws and kneed Zabat in the gut, shoving him backwards.

Shinichi then crossed his sabers and flew right at Zabat, turning on his side quickly as he swung and sliced the bat android in half, the enemy exploding in mid air. He wondered out loud, "OK, how did I learn to fight like that?"

Guysak climbed out of the bleachers and growled, charging and roaring at Liger Zero.

"Yeah, like that'll work," Liger mused. He then pushed the magic button as he was ready to end the games.

**"FULL CHARGE!"**

Liger charged ahead, his golden claws charging with energy as he leaped at his target that tried to fight back. **"STRIKE...LASER...CLAW!"**The Rider swung and cleaved off Guysak's entire right arm and pectoral, Liger rolling along the floor due to his hard landing as the android froze. Guysak wasn't a match at all, realizing that, as he exploded in the middle of the gym.

Shinichi ran over to Liger and gave him a pat on the shoulder, "Yatta! We did it, Aniki!"

"Yeah, we did," said Liger. "And now we better go."

"Oh, right," said Shinichi. "Slip away before we have to answer some difficult questions."

Cheers and applause were suddenly heard around the two armored young men.

"Dammit...we better bail," Liger whispered while waving to the students.

"Good point," Shinichi agreed, "We'll leave through the back..." The two waved as they retreated backstage, disappearing from the students while they still cheered.

"That was amazing!"

"That guy in white totally saved our asses!"

"What about that black one though? I thought he was a bad guy!"

"He must've been some double agent! That's the only logical explanation."

Milly stepped up and held her mic and asked, "Is everyone alright?" She got cheers in response. "That's good, and while it's depressing, but I think we should all get ready to go home. The police should be here too, so let's try to provide our full cooperation, OK?" The students cheered in agreement, following Milly's orders to a T.

* * *

"Well, here it is, home sweet home," said Yūji as he and Shinichi stood in front of the door. "Are you nervous?"

"What if they don't recognize me?" Shinichi asked worriedly.

"It hasn't been _that _long," said Yūji. "Just relax." Yūji opened the front door, seeing his family gathered in the living room. "Everyone, there's someone I'd like you to meet," he said as he stepped aside to reveal the person standing behind him to his family.

"Minna-san, tadaima," Shinichi greeted.

"Whoa," Crow breathed.

"Yeah," Jack agreed.

A blur ran right into Shinichi and he was hugged tightly by his mother.

"OH, SHINICHI, YOU'RE BACK!"

"Easy there, Kaa-chan. I nearly went deaf," he said.

"I'd say it's worth it," Shōtarō laughed as he joined in on the hug.

"So, Aniki told me I was gone for two years," said Shinichi. He hadn't fully recovered from the revelation and he didn't have any memory of the past two years he went missing as the last thing he remembered was heading towards his high school entrance exam.

"Let's not worry about that," Yūsei dismissed with a smile. "We're just glad you're back where you belong."

"That's right~!" Aki beamed as she pulled her nephew into a hug and started kissing him all over his face.

_Yeah, this is one of those moments that makes life worthwhile. Shin's back and the family's back together. Still, there's those fuckers that took Shin in the first place. They started this whole mess. And for pissing me off, they're going to burn; count on it._

* * *

**"BLACK 13 has gone rogue. He has become a renegade, deserted the organization, and has made himself into our enemy. That is why he must be destroyed. The punishment for treason is death!"**

Present in the room were figures in the darkness with glowing eyes of various colors.

**"That's truly a shame. I kind of liked BLACK 13."**

**"There's that new Rider as well."**

**"Could **_**he **_**be the reason for BLACK 13's defection?"**

**"It no longer matters. Both Liger and BLACK 13 are now our enemies. Those are the facts."**

**"Do we even know anything about this new Rider?"**

**"We don't. We've hacked into several cameras and there is no footage of Liger's true identity. The best we can do is wait for him to slip up."**

**"Regardless of who he is, this new Rider will fall; like all the others."**

**"Of course, General,"**the other attendants agreed.

**"I hope he's cute~! I'd love to make him my new pet! Just the thought of the things I could do with him is getting me excited!"**

**"...Anyway, do you think our plans could be hindered without BLACK 13?"**

**"There are more where he came from. We just need to be careful."**

**"No one will get in the way of our goals. We'll destroy both BLACK 13 and Liger. So we swear, on the name of SHADOW!"**

The attendants all stood and chorused, "**ALL HAIL SHADOW!**"

_To Be Continued..._

* * *

**KRB: And that ends number 3! Instead of SHOCKER, we have a group called SHADOW. Wonder what they got cooking up. Odds are the same old crap as any other evil organization, huh?**


	4. Return to Civilization

**Tail 4: Return to Civilization**

"Are you sure about this, Aniki?" Shinichi asked as he stood in front of Neo Domino High with his cousin. This was the school he'd applied for before he went missing and where he was supposed to take his entrance exam. But that was two years ago. Now, here he was, about to step foot into the school of his dreams. He was dressed in his middle school uniform, which still fit him even after two years.

"I'm positive," said Yūji. "I mean, sure, you're gonna be a freshman when you're supposed to be a senior, but other than that you'll do fine. You just need to take the entrance exam first. First there's the written portion and then the practical portion." Yūji had spoken with the headmistress and chancellor about scheduling an exam for Shinichi.

"Yeah, I know. You drilled me for the exam for weeks," Shinichi said. He had his deck ready. It hadn't changed since but before today he had to update his deck with new cards and plan out some new strategies.  
"You'll be fine," Yuki assured. The tests aren't as difficult as one would think..."

Two weeks ago, Shinichi had returned to his family and he had indeed missed a lot. He met his little brother Shō for the first time. It was a little awkward at first but he liked being a big brother. He learnt that his family never gave up on looking for him. Even if it seemed like they had moved on they hadn't given up hope.

Still, Shinichi didn't have memories of anything that had occurred for the past two years he went missing and now he was some kind of super cyborg with hi-tech armor.

"Just remember what we went over and relax," Yūji told him, "It's Saturday, so there won't be a lot of people around."

"YŪJI!"

"Hold that thought," Yūji said as he turned and grabbed Yokoshima, turning quickly and flipping the boy over his shoulder. "Are you ever **_not_ **going to fall for that, Yoko?"

"He never learns," Daichi quipped as he and the others joined him.

"This is rare," Yūji quipped, "Never thought you guys would be here on a Saturday; especially you, Misato."

"We kinda heard you were coming over from Yuki," said Misato. "So, who's this guy with you?" She was referring to Shinichi.

"I mentioned before," he grinned as he slung an arm over Shinichi's shoulders, "This is my cousin, Shinichi!"

"Hi," Shinichi smiled shyly. "I'm Banabara Shinichi. Nice to meet you all."

"He's here to take his entrance exam," said Yūji.

"But this isn't entrance exam season," said Yokoshima, confused. "And he looks a little too old to be applying as a freshman."

"Shit happens," Yūji shrugged.

"Well, I think he's adorable!" Milly squealed as she captured Shinichi in a strong hug. "I can tell you two are related, especially with those shiny blue eyes of yours~!"

"My dad and his mom are twins, so of course we'd have the same eyes," said Yūji.

"Well, he may be cute, but you're handsome," Milly winked. Yūji just rolled his eyes. "Oh, and welcome, Banabara-san. I'm Milly Ashford, Student Council President."

"Nice to meet you, Ashford-kaichou," Shinichi blushed as he was still being hugged.

"Hi! I'm Michiru," the youngest girl introduced. "Masami Michiru! Nice to meet you, Shin-kun!"

"Ryūnosuke Yokoshima, and I'm Yuji's best friend," Yokoshima grinned.

"You wish," scoffed. "Takashima Daichi."

"Yukinojô Chiaki," Chiaki signed.

Shinichi blinked and asked, " What's with the signs?"

"Vow of silence," Yūji answered.

"Nekozawa Hana," the goth introduced, "And I wish you the best of luck on your exam."

"Thanks," Shinichi accepted.

* * *

Shinichi sat in the exam hall, alone, with just himself and his examination paper in front of him. He had a No. 2 pencil and an answer sheet. The first part of the exam had multiple choice answers, but he couldn't blindly choose answers. He needed to think. Out of the four choice answers, only one was the true one and the others were decoys.

The next part of the written exam involved answering true or false questions.

The final part of the written exam required him to write a 500 word essay.

* * *

After the written exam, Shinichi needed to take a break. By the time he was finished with his written exam, it was already lunch time. The next phase of the exam was an oral exam and would be quite challenging for him mentally. He was going to be interviewed for acceptance into Neo Domino High. His interview would take place in two hours to give him time to prepare himself mentally.

"How are you feeling?"

Shinichi looked up to see Yūji and Yuki sitting across from him. "Not as scared as I first thought," he smiled, "The exam was exactly like you said it would be."

"There's an advantage in knowing someone who took the test," Yūji nodded. "I came close to a perfect score."

"Let's hope things go well then during the interview," Shinichi nodded.

"...Oh yeah, I forgot about that," Yūji realized.

"They got my documents so they have references. Let's hope I make a first good impression."

Yuki smiled faintly, "You'll be fine..."

* * *

Shinichi sat in the interview room in front of Shizuru Viola and Natsuki Kruger, the vice-chairman and chairman, respectively, at Neo Domino High. They were scrutinizing his records, checking his scores and also his documents which he'd sent in for an application. He had applied two years prior but never made it to the school to sit for the entrance exam.

"I remember," Natsuki frowned, "You were supposed to come in for the entrance exam but you disappeared during that accident on the bus."

"Such a terrible day that was," Shizuru sighed. "Shiori was so devastated that even my teasing couldn't get a rise outta her..."

"Regardless, I'm glad you were able to come back to us, Shinichi," Natsuki smiled. "We missed you as well."

"Thank you," said Shinichi. "And I appreciate that you have the time to interview me."

"Well, checking your scores, we can conclude that you really wanted to get into this school," said Shizuru. "You have pretty good records back when you were in middle school. You did get into trouble a few times, served a few detentions, but I think that's normal for a boy at that age."

"So, tell us, Shinichi-kun, why did you apply for this school? There are other institutes you could've applied for so why pick this place?" asked Natsuki.

"To be honest, it was convenient. I get to live close to my family. Also, it has pretty good facilities and Aniki did recommend this school for me. I've also heard that students who graduate from this school have a chance to go into good universities," said Shinichi.

"And what university do you plan to enroll in?" asked Shizuru.

"Tokyo University," answered Shinichi. "But that's just one of the schools I intend to enroll in. It's got high standards so just to be safe I'll apply for enrollment in other universities."

"Well, do you have a career planned for in the future?" asked Natsuki.

"I like to read and I like to write. I want to be a novelist like Kaa-chan," said Shinichi. "But I also like fast bikes as well so maybe I could become a designer of motor vehicles. Right now, I can't really say, but my decision is split between the two." He paused. "I also have an interest in photography."

* * *

"You planned this, didn't you?" Shinichi asked Yūji suspiciously.

"Planned what?" Yūji replied innocently.

"Having Shizuru-san and Natsuki-san interview me. Of course they'll accept me. They already like me. It's kinda unfair and biased."

"They're both fair people too," Yūji reminded. "Besides, they do what they want, remember? They're in charge."

"So what now?" Shinichi asked.

"Now, we go do what we do best," Yūji grinned, "Hang out!"

"Hey!" Yokoshima called as he and the others approached the duo. "How'd it go?"

"About as quick as I could hope," Shinichi shrugged. "Hopefully I'll get accepted." He asked, "So, where exactly are we going to go hang out?"

* * *

**CRASH!**

Daichi smirked as he picked up the spare, with Yokoshima and the others clapping. "Yeah, I'm good," he boasted.

"Yeah, you are," Yūji nodded as he went next, lifting a sapphire-blue bowling ball as the pins were reset. "However, you forget that..." He turned and made his way to the line, winding up as he dropped his ball downrange until it collided with the pins, taking them out in one shot with a thunderous boom.

"STRIKE!" Yokoshima and Michiru cheered.

Yūji grinned and boasted, "THIS IS MY GAME, BABY!"

Yuki was silent but applauded her brother's success as she smiled. She knew how good her brother was in several games, bowling being just one of them.

Shinichi rolled his eyes, "Show Off," and went to pick up a bowling ball. He noted that it felt light in his hands, almost weightless. Shrugging he went to a lane and focused on the pins that were in front of him. He drew his arm back and tossed the ball. It rolled along the lane at high velocity and slammed into the pins so hard they broke into pieces and made a hole through the back. Shinichi sweat-dropped.

"Oops," he squeaked.

Yūji and the others saw what happened, all speechless, before Yūji broke out I to a boisterous laughter, falling over and holding his gut as he laughed in agony at the sheer hilarity of what his cousin had just done.

"Whoa, dude! You broke those pins!" Yokoshima exclaimed. "Guys, did you see that? Yūji's cousin broke those pins! He broke those pins!"

"We saw it, you don't have to keep repeating it," remarked Daichi in annoyance but he was still shocked.

"Wow, you must be really strong," said Michiru and she went to squeeze Shinichi's bicep. "Hana-chan, come feel his arm!"

"I'll pass," said Hana.

"I'll do it!" said Milly and she grasped Shinichi's other bicep and gave it a squeeze. "Oh my!"  
"Er...could you...please...not do that?" asked Shinichi nervously, blushing as Michiru and Milly were squeezing his biceps. "Aniki, a little help here?"

"OK...OK," Yūji called as he finally got up from the floor, still giggling from how funny the event was. "Give Shin some room to breathe..."

Milly saw this as a chance to have a little fun and smirked, "What's wrong, Yūji~? Is my faithful servant jealous?"

"I don't get jealous," Yūji stated, "And your little tricks don't work on me all the time, Prez."

"Your cousin here is kind of cute," Milly commented. She turned her eyes to Shinichi again, "Are you interested in a date, Banabara-kun?"

"Hey, Milly," called out Misato. "He looks ready to pass out from hormone overload there."

Daichi noted Yūji slight irritation and smirked, "Well, looks like you _do _get jealous."

"Bite it," Yūji snapped.

Milly laughed and hugged her faithful "lackey", giving him a cheek-full of boobage, "Oh, don't worry, Yūji, you'll always be the only man just for me~!"

"Wonderful..." he mumbled.

Yuki was instantly by her twin's side as she held onto his left arm, trying to pry him out of Milly's hold. "Onii-sama...is mine," she muttered coldly.

"Wow, Aniki," said Shinichi. "You're a real ladies' man, like Kaa-chan said."

"What _exactly _did Shiori-ma tell you?" Yūji asked cautiously.

"That you made a harem out of all the female members of the student council," Shinichi grinned.

"Ha...Harem?!" Hana gaped.

"Oh, that sounds like a great idea," Milly smirked.

Michiru blinked and asked, "What's a harem?"

**"It's where several women share a joint relationship with a single man,**" Chiaki signed.

Shinichi asked, "OK, I've been wondering, why does he use signs?"

"He took a vow of silence," said Daichi.

"No, I mean, where does he get them?" Shinichi rephrased.

"That explanation would require a lot of signs," said Hana.

"So we just roll with it," Yūji added.

Shinichi regarded Chiaki oddly, "So, how long will this silence last?"

**"Until I graduate,"**signed Chiaki.

"Why?" asked Shinichi.

"**Family tradition**," Chiaki signed simply. "**My father did it, so did my grandfather and my great-grandfather, and so on.**"

"So, what? Is this like something you do for a year?" asked Shinichi.

"He hasn't spoken a year since we entered high school," Yokoshima remarked. "Ever."

"Wow, that must take a lot of concentration," said Shinichi.

"But it makes calling him on the phone pointless," said Yokoshima. He then received a text message from Chiaki.

"_I can still read texts and text you back, baka._"

"He's gotcha there," Daichi snickered as he ate some fries.

Misato was silent for some time as she was thinking. Her eyes darted between Yūji, Milly, Hana, Yuki, and Michiru. All four of them were attractive in their own way. Yūji was a man, strong, intelligent, and attractive. Milly was a foreigner and had a great figure, and she was hot and kinky; not to mention she had a great rack that was even bigger than her, if only slightly. Hana was a little strict, but she felt that the goth was especially tight since she could tell she was a virgin. Yuki was quiet, but she had a nice body and she could only imagine that the white-haired girl would be a screamer in bed. Then there was Michiru: cute, innocent, flexible... Yeah, she could have some fun with her. More perverse thoughts swam in her brain as Misato licked her lips with anticipation as she started plotting.

Shogo noticed the look on Misato's face and grew curious. "You OK? You've been quiet for some time."

"Oh, I'm fine~" she purred, "Just...fine~" Her eyes locked onto Yūji, seemingly stripping him with her eyes as she licked her lips hungrily.

* * *

The group went to the park and enjoyed the peace and relaxation it provided.

"DIVE~!" Michiru cried as she landed onto the grassy floor, rolling around playfully. "So nice~!"

"So, what should we do here?" Hana asked.

"ARE YOU READY FOR SOME FOOTBALL?!" Yokoshima howled as he revealed a football in his hand.

"Were you carrying that with you this whole time?" Shinichi asked.

"Believe it or not, Yokoshima's a member of the football team too," said Daichi.

"A lot of the guys call him 'The Bulldozer'," Yūji confirmed.

"OK, so let's see what you got, Shinichi," Yokoshima challenged.

"Hang on," Yūji prompted as he counted the party. There were 6 boys and 5 girls. "One of us has to sit out."

"I'll sit this one out," Shinichi volunteered. He didn't want to hurt anyone due to his cybernetic enhancements, and he didn't feel all-too comfortable around everyone yet. These were Yūji's friends, not his. He felt his cousin should be the one to have fun while he kicked back to relax and observe how they all interacted.

"Prepare to get schooled, fuckers," Misato grinned.

"Mind your language, Misato," Hana scolded.

And it had begun; boys vs. girls in a friendly game of football. Chiaki's large body was the perfect defense as Daichi and Shogo managed to make 2 goals, putting them up 6 to 0. Of course, none of the girls were slouches either. Misato was fairly athletic and Michiru was in the gymnastics club. Hana was surprisingly quick and Yuki was possibly the fastest of the girls. With Milly's leadership skills to unite them, these girls seemed to be a perfect team.

"I got it," Yūji called as he tracked the ball falling. "I got it!" He caught the ball and grinned, only to look up and gawk as he saw his sister, Misato, Michiru, and Milly jumping at him.

"DOGPILE!" the girls cried as they landed on him with a loud thud, making the boys and Hana wince.

"Hey, knock it off...!" Yūji demanded as he could feel the girls' hands all over him. "Hey, who's touching me there!?"

Shinichi held his stomach, hurting, because he was laughing too hard.

"Get the ball!" Milly ordered.

"Fuck the ball! Get his clothes," Misato corrected.

"Yūji-kun's muscles are so hard~" Michiru beamed as she was feeling his chest under his shirt.

"Onii-sama...is mine," Yuki declared.

"Stop...that tickles," Yūji giggled, before he let out a yelp. "Misato! Get outta my pants!"

Shinichi was still laughing, and laughing so hard he shed a tear. He took out his cellphone and took a picture with it.

* * *

"You've got some great friends," Shinichi said as he, Yūji and Yuki were headed home together. "I wish I had friends like that."

"What are you talking about? They're your friends too," argued Yūji but Shinichi shook his head.

"They're _your _friends," Shinichi corrected. "Not mine. I'm just your cousin who you brought along to hang out with them."

"But they can be your friends," Yuki insisted.

"Yuki-nee, I doubt anyone would want to be my friend when they learn what I am," said Shinichi pessimistically. "I had fun, though. Thanks." He smiled weakly.

The twins looked to each other worriedly. Something was wrong with their cousin, and they could tell. Before he was kidnapped, he was always willing to make friends and have fun. To see him acting so shy and melancholy...it was just wrong.

"If you peel away the skin, people will know I'm not like everybody else. I can tell that my body's been modified in so many ways that I'm not sure how much of me is still flesh and blood and how much of me is mechanical. I'm just a freak of science now," Shinichi stated and sighed.

"Knock it off," Yūji ordered. "No matter what bullshit comes out of your mouth, that won't change the fact that we're still blood. No matter what those fuckers did to you, we're still family; I know that for a fucking fact. So you better get your head right and forget all that bullshit. What matters now is that you're here, with us."

Yuki nodded in agreement, knowing that he was right. Despite what her cousin may have done during the two years of his absence, none of that mattered to the twins as they had their cousin back in the family and even she swore to keep it that way.

"Arigatou, Aniki, Yuki-chan," Shinichi smiled. He was grateful that his family still accepted him. He wouldn't know what he would've done if they had turned their backs on him. It just gave him a sense of relief that he had a home to go back to.

"Now, come on. Let's go home and tell everyone how well you did on the exam," encouraged Yūji.

"But the results aren't out yet," Shinichi argued as Yuki took his hand.

"No reason not to celebrate early!" the white-haired girl smiled. Yūji took his other hand and Shinichi ended up being dragged along by his cousins as they ran back home together. He felt the warmth of their hands and realized what it meant. He could feel their warmth and he was still human.

And nothing would ever make him forget that fact.

* * *

"_**Observation: So far it seems that BLACK 13 is attempting to rejoin normal human society, but his insecurities and doubt over his humanity is forcing him to push others away. His family is attempting to get him to accept that he is human, but ultimately they will fail. He belongs to the organization and will return to the organization**_. _**Then, he will be punished for his betrayal.**_"

_To Be Continued..._

* * *

**KRB: NUMBER 4! I AM ON A ROLL! Sorry, not trying to brag. Just been a while since I've been on such a streak. Anyway, hope you guys keep enjoying this stuff.**


	5. Fragmented Pieces

**Tail 5: Fragmented Pieces!**

Shinichi screamed as he woke up with a start. He panted, drenched in sweat, his heart thundering in his chest as he attempted to catch his breath. He immediately turned on the lamp on his bedside table and grabbed his notebook to write about the dream he had. For several weeks since he returned to his family he had been having very vivid nightmares and since the first time he decided to write down the details of his dreams. There might be significant clues in them about where he'd been taken to and what had been done to him. They weren't exactly dreams. They were like memories he didn't know he had being replayed. He did have a blank in his memories of the past two years but these nightmares might be connected to his repressed memories.

He glanced at his alarm clock and groaned. He'd woken up at 4:30 in the morning. How was he going to get back to sleep now? And even if he did, he'd end up lethargic.

Tomorrow was his first day of school.

Shinichi closed the notebook and put away the pen before putting them back on the bedside table. "Just, get back to sleep," he uttered.

That was when the door swung open and Shiori stood in the doorway.

"I heard a scream," she said.

"It's fine, Kaa-chan. I just had a bad dream," he told her. "Just go back to sleep." She crossed the distance and hugged her son tight. "Kaa-chan?"

"Just wanted to hug you so you didn't get bad dreams again," she told him before kissing his forehead. "I love you."

"Love you too, Kaa-chan," said Shinichi. His eyes gazed at the notebook. He hadn't shown anyone what he'd written. Maybe it was time to share.

* * *

"ZebraSkeleton," the disembodied voice spoke as a figure knelt in the dark room, a spotlight shining over him. "Do you know what your mission is?"

"Yes, My Lord," answered ZebraSkeleton. He resembled a humanoid, biomechanical zebra with white armor decorated with black stripes. He also had a gold chest plate and gold pauldrons. Blades were equipped to his forearms. He took out a pair of photographs and with a swipe of his arms he cut them in half.

"Then go, accomplish your mission, or you will not be allowed to return."

"Yes, My Lord."

The two cut photographs were pictures of Shinichi and Kamen Rider Liger.

* * *

"So, are you excited about your first day, Shinichi?" Shiori asked her son at the dining table. She had made him a special breakfast of bunny pancakes.

"I can't really complain, Kaa-chan," Shinichi smiled. "Just wish I could've started sooner."

"You're starting now, which is important," smiled Shiori. "Just remember to study smart and make friends. And find yourself a girlfriend."

"Kaa-chan," Shinichi blushed.

Shiori then blushed as she suggested, "Oh, maybe you can make a harem like your cousin! You went to play with him and the others the other day, so I'm sure you've been learning from him! Hah, seeing you two have fun together; just like the good old days~! And you and Yūji-kun were so adorable together when you were babies!"

"Yeah, yeah," Shinichi nodded.

* * *

To get to school on time, Shinichi needed to take the bus. This time, unlike before, he had chaperones. Yūji and Yuki were accompanying him, holding hands. The twins were always close.

"You know, you don't have to accompany me to the bus stop," Shinichi remarked.

"Too bad, we're going with you," Yūji insisted, his sister nodding in agreement.

Shinichi rolled his eyes but then his ears picked up on something and he shouted. "Look out!" He pushed his cousins down to the ground and right at that moment a lamppost was split in half.

"Lemme guess," Yūji frowned, "Another of those fuckers." However, the style of damage to the lamp was different from those other two he encountered before."

"Yes," Shinichi confirmed and he spotted the assailant in the distance, coming at them, and the sound they made as they ran along the sidewalk was like a horse's gallop. He reached down to his belt to activate it when Yūji caught his wrist.

"No, let me," said Yūji. "You can't afford to be late on your first day." He said to Yuki as he took out the Liger Belt, "Yuki, get him to school."

"Yes, Onii-sama," Yuki obeyed as she took Shinichi by the hand to the bus stop. Shinichi was worried. Would his cousin be OK?

Yuji stood in the Mech-Beast's path and the mechanical creature went skidding to a halt.

"Get outta my way, human, or I'll slice you up," ZebraSkeleton warned, brandishing his blades threateningly.

"Yeah, let's see how far that gets you before I start kicking your ass," Yūji retorted as slung on his belt and inserted his key.

**"ZERO FORM!"**

And Yūji transformed, his armor forming over him as he flexed his fingers. "OK, fucker, let's get wild," Liger declared. He rushed at ZebraSkeleton and clashed with explosive force, sparks flying in all directions as claws met with blades. ZebraSkeleton slashed Liger across the chest then kicked him hard to drive him back. He dove forward to run Liger through but the Rider side-stepped and kicked ZebraSkeleton in the back to knock him to the ground. Picking himself up, ZebraSkeleton made the sound an angry horse made and charged at Liger. He performed a series of bone-shattering kicks which Liger blocked and then he jumped and kicked Liger across the face, sending him tumbling.

"Now, time for you to go to Hell!" ZebraSkeleton charged.

**"FULL CHARGE!"**

"You first!" Liger roared as he intercepted ZebraSkeleton and drove his claws into the Mech-Beast's gut. The Mech-Beast went rigid and Liger withdrew his glowing claws as the Kaijin stumbled backwards.

"Onore...KAMEN RIDER...!" howled the ZebraSkeleton as he collapsed and exploded to pieces.

Liger dusted off his hands and deactivated his armor. "I hope I'm not late," Yūji said before he ran to catch up with Yuki and Shinichi.

* * *

Yūji reached the bus stop but saw the bus pulling away. "Shit!"

"Onii-sama!" shouted Yuki at the door of the bus. "Come on! I'll catch you!"

Yūji nodded and sprinted after the bus before it accelerated and jumped. He stretched out his hand and Yuki caught it before she pulled him inside.

"That was dangerous," Shinichi remarked as Yūji took his seat next to him as Yuki took a seat across the aisle.

"I know. Next time we're taking the bike," Yūji said as he leaned back and relax for the rest of the ride to school.

* * *

Shinichi stood in front of the classroom marked 1-C (Year 1, Section C). He felt a little self-conscious. Normally, if he hadn't been kidnapped, he would've been in his third year but because an organization had kidnapped him, he had lost two years of his life. He pushed those depressing thoughts to the back of his mind. He just straightened his tie and his blazer and took a deep breath and waited for him to be called inside before sliding the door open. His Neo-Domino High uniform really fit him and he'd just gotten it several days earlier.

He heard himself being called and slid the door open to enter and introduce himself to the class. He took the marker and wrote his name on the whiteboard properly before turning to face his new classmates. The teacher gave a brief introduction of Shinichi of how he was meant to be enrolled two years prior but some extraneous circumstances prevented him from being a student until now.

"I'm Banabara Shinichi ," Shinichi said and bowed. "Nice to meet you all." He smiled charmingly and then he blinked as he saw that the girls outnumbered the boys. Judging by the headcount, 75% of the class were girls.

* * *

Shinichi impressed the class quite quickly as he was able to translate an English passage perfectly in English class. Then during math class he solved a complex math equation without pausing. His classmates, interested in getting to know him, crowded around his desk. They asked questions and he tried to answer them. Some asked about his favorite band and he told them he didn't have a particular favorite band or genre. He listened to whatever music that interested him. He told them he learnt English pretty early as a young child. When they probed him about what prevented him from enrolling in school as a freshman two years prior he lied and told them that he was in the hospital.

It was during PE that Shinichi showed off what he could do. Lunch followed and Shinichi went to join his cousin and friends.

* * *

"So, how was your first day?" asked Yūji.

"Did you know that 75% of the population in my class is female?" Shinichi asked.

"Wow, that many girls?" Yūji grinned. He nudged his brother playfully, "You'll have plenty of girls to choose from for dates."

Shinichi blushed and avoided Yūji's grinning gaze, "I doubt I can get a date..." He hadn't made any friends yet. He just had admirers. "But some members of the track team did ask me to join. I kinda broke the school record during PE for the 100 meter sprint."

"Wow, really?" Yokoshima sounded impressed. Shinichi, however, didn't look happy about it. The only reason he broke the record were the various augmentations done to his body. The organization made him stronger, faster, and smarter. That was why he could solve the math problem. His brain actually calculated faster than a calculator.

Suddenly, their silence was broken as they heard screams. Rising to his feet, Shinichi looked over the roof railing to see students running out of the cafeteria.

"What's going on?" Daichi asked.

Yūji answered, "I don't know..." His eyes narrowed. "Come on. Yuki, Shinichi."

* * *

They got to the cafeteria and found that it was a mess and students were fleeing. The unlucky ones, however, were injured, and the cause of the disturbance was none other than ZebraSkeleton.

"Him again!?" Yūji yelled in shock.

"Didn't you destroy him?" Shinichi questioned.

"I blew him the fuck up!" Yūji shot back.

Shinichi frowned and then he saw someone cowering on her knees in the corner. It was one of his classmates. "No!" He dashed forward and took hold of her as ZebraSkeleton raised his blades to attack. Yūji grabbed one of the cafeteria benches and hurled it with all his might, hitting ZebraSkeleton upside the head.

"Thanks, Aniki!" Shinichi said as he picked up the female student to carry her to safety. "Now kill that thing right this time!"

"Just get everyone outta here!" Yūji ordered as his friends helped in getting the injured out of the cafeteria.

"Are you surprised, Rider?" asked ZebraSkeleton.

"Your ass is grass now, fucker," Yūji swore as he produced his belt and turned the key.

**"ZERO FORM!"**

ZebraSkeleton swiped his blades together in anticipation and stared Kamen Rider Liger down. Liger dashed forward, claws folded out and slashed at the Mech-Beast who parried with his forearm blade. ZebraSkeleton kicked at Liger who did a backflip to avoid the blow. ZebraSkeleton then tackled into Liger, throwing him into a cafeteria table, breaking it in half. ZebraSkeleton tried to run Liger through but the Rider shoved him back with his feet, sending him staggering back. Liger picked himself back up and made a dash to land a lethal slash across ZebraSkeleton's chest, sparks flew as well as chunks of steel.

"Wouldn't mind a weapon right now," Liger muttered. He looked around, spotting lunch tables and decided to start some chaos. He lifted a table over his head and launched it at ZebraSkeleton, the Mech-Beast slicing it in two as the pieces flew past him. This didn't stop Liger as he continued tossing tables one by one, with ZebraSkeleton cutting down table after table. Spotting mop buckets, Liger started running around ZebraSkeleton as he tipped the buckets over, spilling soapy water all over the cafeteria floor.

With the loss of traction due to the slippery soapy water on the floor, ZebraSkeleton's feet slipped along the floor, falling on his back. Liger saw his chance and leaped over, landing on top of the Mech-Beast as he started beating on his head with elbow strikes and hard punches, using ground and pound tactics to tire the Mech-Beast out before he can assure a final hit.

Seeing an opening, Liger prepared his finisher.

**"FULL CHARGE!"**

With both his claws energized, Liger lunged forward and performed his attack, **"Strike...Laser...CLAW!"** With a roar he slashed the Mech-Beast diagonally in both directions, leaving glowing marks along ZebraSkeleton's body. Liger landed behind ZebraSkeleton on one knee and the Mech-Beast exploded. However, despite his victory, Liger knew an attack at school was worse than it appeared.

_Shit, this isn't good! That bastard caused a lot of trouble cuz of me and he even followed me to school! This could only mean that these fuckers know more about me...__  
_  
Any celebrations would have to wait as something amongst the pieces began to glow and rise into the air before collecting the pieces of ZebraSkeleton and bonding them together to reform the Mech-Beast.

"Aw, fuck," Liger grimaced. So _that's _how he survived their last fight. Things just got a little tougher.

"Aniki!" Shinichi shouted.

Liger looked back to see Shinichi returning to the battle. "What are you doing back here?!"

Shinichi scanned ZebraSkeleton and informed Yūji, "His core is in his head! Destroy the core and he won't come back!" He reached behind his back and took out his Laser Sword's handle and tossed it to Liger. "Catch!"

"How the fuck do you work this thing...?" Liger blanched as he clumsily caught the handle..

"There's a slider to extend the blade!" Shinichi instructed.

"Let's see..." Liger found the slider and pushed it up with a thumb, the blade extending out as he was startled a little. "Oh-ho, look at this shit!" ZebraSkeleton came at him and swung at him but Liger raised the Laser Sword and the blade cut through ZebraSkeleton's blade like a knife through butter.

"My blade! My blade! You cut my fucking blade!" screamed ZebraSkeleton.

"No shit, Sherlock," the Rider retorted as he swung again to cut through the other incoming blade. Without his weapons, the Mech-Beast couldn't stop Liger from landing the final blow. "Now explode for real this time!" Liger kicked ZebraSkeleton before tossing the saber like a spear, piercing the monster's head as it was pinned to a wall.

"You...You..." ZebraSkeleton growled as he pointed at Liger and then at Shinichi before going limp and exploding, taking part of the wall with him. The handle of the Laser Sword went flying but Shinichi caught it in his hand and pocketed it.

"You did it," Shinichi smiled approvingly to his cousin.

"Natsuki and Shizuru are gonna be so pissed when they see this," Liger paled as he looked around. In a way, he caused more damage than even ZebraSkeleton did. He undid the transformation and the armor dematerialized.

"Collateral damage," Shinichi stated. "Considering the circumstances, I think you can be forgiven."

"We've got a bigger problem," Yūji frowned, "These fuckers know where we are. And kids got hurt cuz of me."

"And because of me," Shinichi said sadly.

"What are you talking about?" Yūji demanded.

"Willing or not, I was part of their organization. As such, I am a deserter and a traitor," Shinichi said. "That Mech-Beast was an assassin sent after both of us."

"OK, then we agree to disagree," Yūji negotiated.

"They won't stop," Shinichi said seriously. He rubbed his temples. "I'm sorry, I don't mean to worry you. Just telling you how it is."

"Hey, Shin. It'll be OK," said Yūji encouragingly. "We can beat them." He put his hand on his cousin's shoulder. "I couldn't have beaten this guy without your help."

Shinichi nodded. He did come to help his cousin. His cousin was facing the force of an organization which had been active for who knows how long. How long had this organization been hiding in the shadows and how far had their claws reached? How many people like him had been taken and converted into their weapons?

"Come on, let's go before the police show up. Someone must've made a call by now," said Shinichi as he slapped his cousin's back to get him to start moving.

"I gotcha," Yūji nodded, "Hope the others are OK..."

* * *

"Today was crazy," said Milly as she fanned herself. "Such a ruckus in the cafeteria...!"

The student council was assembled in the student council room with Shinichi joining them.

"I'm just glad you guys are OK," Yūji sighed.

"Aw, it's so adorable how you worry over me," Milly gushed as she hugged Yūji's head.

"Hey, Yūji-kun was worried about all of us," Michiru reminded, "Now let me hug him too!"

"But seriously," Misato some up, "A zebra monster? How freaky can you get, right?"

"And he just went crazy," Yokoshima nodded. "Never seen anything like it!"

There was a knock at the door. "I'll get it," Shogo volunteered as he opened the door. Shinichi recognized the girl. It was one of his classmates and the girl he had saved earlier.

"Is Banabara-san here?" she asked. She was a cute and petite girl with chin-length brown hair.

Yūji smiled and gently nudged his cousin forward. He gave Yūji a glare then went to the door.

"I'm here," said Shinichi.

"I'm Hirasawa Yui." She bowed. "Thank you for saving me!"

"It was nothing, Hirasawa-san," said Shinichi.

"Do you want to come over to my home for dinner? My little sister Ui can cook really well and I want to thank you for saving me!" Shinichi seemed uncertain and looked back at his cousins for a solution.

"We'll be sure to drop him off at your place," Yūji smiled. Yuki nodded in agreement.

"Oh, thank you!" Yui smiled. "Can I have a sheet of paper to write down my address?" Milly glided over and handed a sheet of notepaper and a pen to Yui. She wrote her address down and handed it over to Shinichi who accepted without a second thought. "Banabara-san, I'll see you at 7, OK?"

"Er..." Shinichi began but Yui dashed off happily, humming a tune. He turned to glare at his cousins, "What did you do that for?"

"What? Get you a date?" Yūji replied innocently.

"She only invited me to dinner to thank me for saving her," Shinichi retorted.

"Aka; a date," he grinned, "Homestlye!"

Shinichi palmed his face. "There's no way I can get out of this, can I?"

"Nope," Yuki giggled. "Now, come on, let's get you home so we can get you dressed up for your dinner date."

"It ain't a date!"

Yūji stood on the table and called out, "Friends! Countrymen! Babes! What say you!?"

"Go for it," Yokoshima encouraged. Chiaki gave Shinichi a nod and smile.

"I think it's sweet," Milly nodded.

"Good luck, Shin-kun," Michiru cheered.

Misato smirked, "Don't do anything I wouldn't!"

**つづく**

* * *

**KRB: OK, here's number 5. Sorry it took so long. Also sorry that it seems shorter than the others; dunno why... Been busy and actually forgot about this; shame on me (-_-). Anyway, please don't stop reading if you enjoy this. And Hirasawa Yui is from K-ON!**


	6. In Hot Water

**Tail 6****:** **In Hot Water!**

"Kaa-chan and Tou-chan are taking me to an inn in the mountains this weekend," said Shinichi informed his cousin as they both went to collect their indoor shoes at the shoe lockers in the foyer of Neo Domino High.

"You mean the type of inn with a hot spring, right?" Yūji asked.

"Yes, an outdoor one. It's mixed bathing so men and women can bathe together. Kaa-chan and Tou-chan thought it'd be nice for us to bond in an onsen together," said Shinichi.

"That sounds very nice~" said Milly as she snuck up behind Shinichi and he jumped.

"Ashford-kaichou!" Shinichi cried out.

"What's this I hear about going to the mountains and soaking in a hot spring?" Milly asked, interested.

"His parents are taking him on a little family trip, that's all, Milly," said Yūji. "And he deserves it too."

"You know, it's been awhile since I've soaked in a hot spring, under the stars," sighed Milly. "You know what? I finally know what the Student Council is going to do this weekend!" She dashed off, leaving both boys at the shoe lockers.

Shinichi blinked, then Yūji blinked, before the cousins could only stare as they both blinked, twice.

"Why do I suddenly feel worried?" Shinichi asked his cousin.

"It's Milly. When it comes to her you should be. She has these crazy schemes all the time and expects us to follow just because she's the Student Council President. I call it an abuse of power, but she's not really doing anything illegal. Just having fun," said Yūji.

"I guess that's what got her elected in the first place," remarked Shinichi. Milly seemed like a very popular girl. "By the way, Kaa-chan and Tou-chan are taking me to an inn in the mountains this weekend," said Shinichi informed his cousin as they both went to collect their indoor shoes at the shoe lockers in the foyer of Neo Domino High.

"You mean the type of inn with a hot spring, right?" Yūji asked.

"Yes, an outdoor one. It's mixed bathing so men and women can bathe together. Kaa-chan and Tou-chan thought it'd be nice for us to bond in an onsen together," said Shinichi.

"That sounds very nice~" said Milly as she snuck up behind Shinichi and he jumped.

"Ashford-kaichou!" Shinichi cried out.

"What's this I hear about going to the mountains and soaking in a hot spring?" Milly asked, interested.

"His parents are taking him on a little family trip, that's all, Milly," said Yūji. "And he deserves it too."

"You know, it's been awhile since I've soaked in a hot spring, under the stars," sighed Milly. "You know what? I finally know what the Student Council is going to do this weekend!" She dashed off, leaving both boys at the shoe lockers.

Shinichi blinked, then Yūji blinked, before the cousins could only stare as they both blinked, twice.

"Why do I suddenly feel worried?" Shinichi asked his cousin.

"It's Milly. When it comes to her you should be. She has these crazy schemes all the time and expects us to follow just because she's the Student Council President. I call it an abuse of power, but she's not really doing anything illegal. Just having fun," said Yūji.

"I guess that's what got her elected in the first place," remarked Shinichi. Milly seemed like a very popular girl.

"Hey, Shin. Are you sure you, Uncle Shōtarō and Aunt Shiori are gonna be fine?" Yūji asked. He was worried. The organization might come after Shinichi and Yūji won't be around to protect him.

"We'll be fine, and if they do come after me, I'll fight them," Shinichi swore.

"Well, that's good. I mean you have your armor-"

"I'm not gonna use that suit," Shinichi interrupted.

"What...?"

"I'm not gonna use that suit," Shinichi repeated. "_They_ created it and forced me use it. There's no way I'm going to use it ever again, _ever_."

"OK," Yūji shrugged. He knew his cousin was stubborn, just like him. And when his mind was made up, there was almost no stopping Shinichi.

"Don't think I can't handle myself, Aniki. You taught me how to fight," Shinichi smiled. He checked his watch. "I'm gonna be late if I don't hurry. Later."

Yūji watched his cousin head to class and just gave a sigh before heading to class as well.

* * *

_"I'm not gonna use that suit. They created it and forced me use it. There's no way I'm going to use it ever again, ever."_

Yūji recalled the last time he ever saw his cousin in that black armor. Back at the party, he had backed Yūji up against those SHADOW agents. Since then, Shinichi hadn't put on that suit and he meant it when he said he wasn't going to use whatever he got from the organization that had kidnapped and brainwashed him. Back then he was fighting his cousin before the generator had shocked Shinichi and brought him back to his senses. His parents had performed surgery on Shinichi sometime after the incident, removing a small device that was in his head that looked like some kind of transceiver. Regardless, Shinichi was back where he belonged and he wasn't going anywhere anytime soon.

"Fudō-san. Fudō-san!"

"Huh?" Yuji responded.

"Fudō-san, if you're done daydreaming, could you please read the next passage?" the teacher asked him.

"Oh, OK, sure," Yūji accepted as he stood and read the right passage. Despite his 'daydreaming', Yūji knew how to follow through in classes.

* * *

"_**Scalding Orca,"**_ the disembodied voice spoke as the spotlight shone on a Mech-Beast which resembled an orca whale with legs. His fins had been replaced with huge, muscular arms and he was covered in very strong and heavy armor. He had a jaw filled with sharp teeth and a blow hole.

"_**You know what to do. Hunt down both the Rider and the deserter, and eliminate them."**_

"Yes," obeyed Scalding Orca.

* * *

At lunch, Shinichi once again joined his cousin and the Student Council on the roof to eat. Shinichi was looking at several fliers he got. They were for after-school clubs.

It didn't take much for Yūji to figure out what was going on in his cousin's head. "Trying to find a club?"

"Need to find something that interests me, but I haven't decided," said Shinichi.

"Well, Neo High's got just about anything and everything. Just gotta keep looking."

"Maybe I'll try a different club out each week as a probationary member before I make up my mind."

"Very good, sample around," Yūji nodded.

"What about you?"

"Sharing second-in-command with Hana in the Student Council," he said. "Milly chose me cuz she said I was cute."

"That doesn't sound like a responsible decision for a Student Council President," Shinichi remarked.

"She's in charge," Yūji shrugged. "Besides, she was the first person who talked to me when I started High School."

"Unfortunately, as kind and responsible as she is, Milly-kaichou hates to do paperwork and when she does it it's done half-heartedly," said Hana.

"But it's so boring~" whined Milly.

"Just because you're Student Council President, doesn't mean you can just have fun," said Hana. "The only reason you took the position is because it lets you skip class for 'legitimate reasons'."

"Don't be mad, Hana. Milly did work to get her position," Yūji reasoned.

"You know, I've been wondering about something," said Milly.

"Wondering about what, Prez?" asked Yokoshima.

"The White and Black Knights," she answered causing Yūji and Shinichi to momentarily become rigid.

"You're calling those guys 'Knights'?" Yūji blinked.

"The whole school is! They saved everyone!" Michiru beamed.

"But wasn't the black one part of that group that took us hostage?" Shogo asked. Shinichi looked down in guilt.

"He could've just been a double-agent," Hana speculated.

"That walking kitty cat was pretty strong though," Misato purred. "I wouldn't mind being that Knight's 'maiden'."

"You'll have to deal with the monsters though," Shinichi remarked. "When you're a knight, trouble comes looking for you." He took another bite of his lunch.

"And I don't trust that guy in black," said Daichi negatively.

"But still, don't you wanna know what they look like without their masks?" Milly asked.

"Regardless of who they are, they have protected the students with their lives and continue to do so," Yuki explained. "We should respect them for that."

Yokoshima blinked, "Did Yuki just use more than 5 words in a sentence...?"

"She knows how to talk, fool," Daichi hissed.

"So worry not, everyone," Milly declared, "because we'll be going to the hot springs this weekend!"

"Yay! Hot spring!" Michiru cheered.

* * *

Yūji sighed as he sat between Yuki and Michiru, the two hugging each of his arms as they leaned on him affectionately.

"That should be me," Milly grumbled.

"Show some tact, Milly-kaichō," Hana reprimanded.

Misato, Milly, and Hana were sitting across the three. While Milly was openly jealous, Misato stayed quiet while she watched Yūji. She too wanted to hug one of those strong arms. Chiaki and the others were sitting across from them.

"How are we doing back here, Yūji-kun?" Shiori asked as she came to check on her nephew.

"Aside from being sandwiched, I'm just peachy," he remarked.

When Yūji informed his aunt and uncle about the Student Council's plan (actually Milly's plan) to go to a hot spring, he also learned that the place Milly had chosen was the same place Shinichi and his parents were going to spend the weekend. Thus, that was why they were all on the same train headed towards their destination.

Shō couldn't come along on the trip, so Aki offered to look after the little boy while they were gone for the weekend.

"Sorry about the raid, Shiori-ma," Yūji apologized.

"Nonsense! I've always wanted to meet your little girlfriends, and they're all just adorable," Shiori beamed.

Hana sputtered in her seat with a fierce blush, with Michiru and Milly blushing while Misato smirked. Yuki merely smiled as she cuddled more into Yūji's arm. The twins were always close, but Shiori wasn't blind to Yuki's advances on her brother. It was good source material for her, and she hoped Yuki got what she wanted.

* * *

The group stopped at the station and then had to take taxis to where the mountain was. Unfortunately, the mountain trail was not suitable for cars so they would have to walk all the way to the inn.

"We have to walk there?" Yokoshima groaned.

"Oh, stop complaining," huffed Misato. "You're a football player. You're supposed to have stamina."

"But this is the weekend! We're supposed to relax," he complained.

"Everybody, let us not dawdle," said Milly. "We won't get there if we don't start walking!"

Shiori looked amused and took Shōtarō's hand before walking up the mountain trail with him as Shinichi followed.

"You've got some nice friends, Shinichi," said Shiori.

"They're _Aniki's _friends," he corrected. "I just hang out with them at lunch."

"Then make friends with them as well, Shinichi," Shōtaro suggested. That was easier said than done. He wasn't sure he could make friends with them. If they ever knew what he was they'd probably reject him. Oh, sure, they were nice enough now but he wasn't exactly very optimistic.

"They're good kids, Shin-kun," Shiori said. "And they're friends with Yūji-kun. Have faith in them and your cousin, and I'm sure you'll be surprised."

* * *

After 40 minutes of walking, much to Yokoshima's displeasure, they finally reached the inn. It looked like any other traditional Japanese inn. Of course, they didn't care for its appearance. Rather, they cared about checking in, getting their rooms, and finally soaking in the hot springs. The spring water was rumored to be good for the skin and body's health.

They checked into the hotel and Milly revealed she had booked a large room for the Student Council while Shinichi and his parents had a family-sized room.

"Shameless actions will not be tolerated," Hana declared. They were here to relax and enjoy themselves but they still needed to maintain proper discipline and decorum as well as good manners.

"Boo~, somebody doesn't know how to have fun," Misato jeered.

"Pillow fight!" Milly shouted as she grabbed a pillow from the closet and tossed it at Hana. The meganeko was fed a pillow to the face as her hair got ruffled, her glasses tilted as she turned red and started growling.

"Oh, she got you, Hana-chan!" Yokoshima laughed before Hana launched a pillow in his face.

Chaos bloomed as the kids tossed pillows back and forth, the Student Council waging a war against each other as pillows flew everywhere.

* * *

Shiori could hear the childish chaos from the other room and smiled, "They're a lively bunch."

"A bunch of crazy kids having fun sounds more like it," remarked Shōtarō.

"Come on, Shōtarō-kun! We were young once," Shiori reminded her husband. She beamed as she hugged her husband and son, "Spending time with two of my five favorite boys! I couldn't ask for more!"

"I think we should soak in the hot spring right now," Shinichi suggested.

"Yes, we should," Shiori agreed as she rubbed the base of her neck. "A nice good soak would do us good."

* * *

The Banabaras, before they could soak in the hot spring, needed to shower first. There were two separate shower rooms, one for men and the other for women. Afterwards, they were supplied towels and led towards the outdoor bath by one of the inn's staff members. The outdoor bath was beautiful. It was a shallow pool as an average person sitting in it would only have the water reached up to their collar. The water was also warm. There was a fence around the hot spring but there was no roof so the family could just soak under the sky.

"This is great~" Shiori sighed dreamily.

"Yeah..." Shōtarō agreed. "Some sake would be nice."

"This does feel pretty good," Shinichi seconded. Better yet, he could just forget about all his troubles.

"So, I hear you've been getting quite a lot of attention at school, Shinichi," Shōtarō grinned.

"Just that the track team wants me after I broke the school record during PE," Shinichi shrugged.

"And his class has a lot of girls!" Shiori added, making her son sputter. "Yūji-kun even told me that he saved one of them!"

"Wasn't that when you were invited to a girl's house for dinner?" Shōtarō asked.

"Hirasawa-san wanted to repay me for saving her life when a monster attacked the school cafeteria," Shinichi remarked. Yui then told her friends and the news reached their classmates. "Everyone just loves a hero, I guess." Frankly, Shinichi didn't think he had done anything significant. Yūji had been the one to defeat ZebraSkeleton.

"You don't have to be so modest," Shiori reprimanded, "You saved someone from getting hurt! That's a big deal!"

"She's right," Shōtarō agreed. "Gratitude is rare these days and in today's youth it's even rarer. You should make the most out of earning that gratitude." He chuckled, "Your situation kind of reminds me of when Yūsei-kun went to school."

This got Shinichi's attention, rarely hearing stories of his uncle. "What do you mean?"

"Well, it was around the time we were all in high school," Shōtarō began. "As we were deciding our futures, I wanted to take classes in Criminal Science, your mother was deeply into Literature, Aki-san wanted to study Medical Science and Yūsei-kun was in Engineering and even Theoretical Physics. While they took different classes, Yūsei-kun and Shiori were practically inseparable. Yūsei-kun was actually the only boy in his class, surrounded by women. It was actually amusing and almost every guy in school wanted to kill him. It didn't help that many of the girls in his class were popular. And then, of course, there was Jack and Crow," he added, "And Kiryū as well. They didn't go to school, but they were friends with Yūsei-kun and he was able to keep control of them before they could go crazy. And while he did sleep with many of the girls in school, Yūsei-kun only had eyes for Aki-san and a few others."

"So...?" Shinichi prompted.

"A lot of girls were plenty disappointed," Shōtarō laughed. "Shiori even suggested Yūsei-kun have a harem too!"

"Aki wouldn't have minded either," Shiori giggled. "She was a wild cat when she and Onii-san were dating!"

"So, you're saying I should date as many girls as I can while I'm young before settling down," Shinichi concluded.

"It never hurts to have as much experience as you can until meet your girl," Shōtarō nodded.

Shinichi considered it. But still, there was just a nagging feeling in his mind: The organization was out there.

"Hey, mind if we joined ya?" asked Yūji as he came into the hot spring with Yuki. They both had towels on and were holding hands like always.

"Come right in," allowed Shiori.

"Where are the others?" Shinichi asked.

"They all got knocked out in the pillow fight," said Yuki. "They'll probably wake up after a couple of hours. Probably..."

"And Milly and the girls would just fight over wanting to bathe with me," Yūji remarked.

"Good, we need some peace," said Shinichi. Yūji and Yuki entered the pool and sat down. "Warm enough for ya?"

"Damn, this is great," Yūji sighed, suddenly blushing as Yuki scooted closer to Yūji.

"You two are so cute," Shiori giggled. "Just like me and Onii-san!"

"Wish we had some sake," said Shōtarō.

"We can get someone to get us sake, Shōtarō," said Shiori. "But I'd rather enjoy a soak while sober."

"Yeah, I'd rather not turn into some Mr. Hyde thing," Yūji agreed. "Odds are something weird like that would happen to me."

* * *

By the time they finished their soak, it was dinner. The dining hall was reserved for their group and all were dressed in yukata robes and seated before small tables with their individual meals.

_OK, I gotta admit that times like this don't come often, but when they do I should make the best of them. Spending time with my family AND my friends? That doesn't happen very often. And of course, Shiori-ma tries to embarrass me any chance she gets just for kicks. That's my aunt for ya._

"Japanese cuisine is always so delicious," said Milly. She then turned, glaring at Yūji as she pointed her chopsticks and poking his nose with them. "As for you, you should be ashamed of yourself; bathing without us, _**without me**_!"

"You're fault for knocking each other out with pillows," Yūji countered. "The only one conscious was Chiaki and he agreed to keep an eye on all of you while Yuki and I sat with Uncle Shō and Shiori-ma."

Michiru moaned and whined, "I wanted to bathe with Yūji-kun!"

"You know, we can do more than just soak," said Hana. "They do have other facilities like a recreation room. They also offer massages and karaoke."

"I wouldn't mind a massage from Yūji-boya," Misato purred.

"Actually, I'm dying to hit the recreation centre for some games," grinned Yokoshima.

* * *

"Let's begin the Ping-Pong Match!" Michiru said as she stood at the scoreboard. On one end of the table was Yokoshima and on the other end was Shinichi who was 'forced' to participate.

"OK, this is my serve!" Yokoshima said as he bounced the Ping-Pong ball on the table. He then tossed it up and smashed it with the paddle towards Shinichi. The ball went flying at Shinichi but he managed to return it with a swing of his own paddle. However, he hit the ball too hard and it went flying past Yokoshima before smashing into the wall. It was embedded in a hole caused by the impact.

Shinichi sighed and raised his hand, "I forfeit," ignoring the gaping looks everyone gave him. They looked to the hole in the wall. There was smoke coming out of it as the Ping-Pong ball had been heated because of air friction.

"Ara, I think the Ping-Pong team would like you," said Milly, smiling in amazement.

Shinichi went to play on an arcade machine as Misato whispered to Yuki, "Yuki, just how strong is that cousin of yours and how did he get so strong?"

"I can't say," Yuki whispered back.

"Can't, or _won't_?" Misato retorted suspiciously. "Is this like why you can't tell us where he's been the past two years?"

"Yes," she confessed. "All I can say is that Shin-chan was lost, but he's here now; he is with us now. That is all that matters to me; to us."

Yūji sighed from the boredom, "Wish they had a pool table... That would be good."

"I bet you just wanna stare at our rears while you sit back," Milly sneered.

"You know me well," Yūji laughed. He looked to Shinichi who was alone playing alone on the arcade machine. It was like he was purposely pulling away from other people. Yūji could understand. Shinichi just didn't feel normal. An X-Ray examination his mother performed showed that Shinichi's bones had been coated in metal, his muscles had been replaced by stronger synthetic facsimiles, and almost all his inner organs had been replaced by cybernetic equivalents. He even had superhuman strength because of these implants. All these and more made him feel like an abnormal outcast.

Shinichi needed friends as much as he needed family. His family accepted him without question but he was wary of other people like the Student Council members. He was insecure and had doubts they would accept him once they learnt the truth. As whimsical as they were, he doubted that they could understand. He really couldn't connect with regular people after all that had happened. Yūji didn't like seeing his cousin like this. He was a good kid, smart and athletic, and hardworking when he had a goal in mind. The Student Council could use someone like Shinichi and he could also benefit from spending time with the group who could become his friends. However, he just didn't feel human enough to make friends with others.

Well, Fudō Yūji swore that he was not gonna let his cousin become a lonely outcast.

"Hey, Shin! How about a match?" Yūji challenged.

Shinichi looked up from the arcade machine and then shrugged. "OK." Yūji smiled. Shinichi could never resist a challenge from his cousin.

* * *

"Ow...Ow..." Yūji hissed as he put a bag of ice on his wrist. Returning all of Shinichi's hits had been painful but he managed to do it, somehow. He just put more power in his swings. Michiru freaked out because the ball kept zipping back and forth between the cousins and it was so fast it looked like multiple balls were being exchanged back and forth. It made her dizzy and she couldn't keep score because of it.

It was the same with Air Hockey as the puck was sent back and forth at great speeds.

"I...from this day forward, quit Ping-Pong and air hockey," Yūji groaned, "For life..."

"Sorry," Shinichi apologized. "I can't really control my own strength."

"Then work on it next chance you get," Yūji advised. "I'd hate to see what you'd do to a kickball."

Milly applauded, "Magnificent! Brava! Stupendous! Great show, boys!"

"That had to be the coolest thing I ever saw!" said Daichi.

"Too bad Michiru got dizzy," said Shogo, pointing at Michiru who was sitting on a bench, still recovering from a dizzy spell from when she tried to follow the cousins and keep score. Unfortunately, her eyes weren't able to follow them and she went dizzy from straining her eyes.

The Fudō boy went to her, kissing her forehead and stroking her cheek. "Sorry about that, Michiru," he apologized. "Come on; let's go find you a banana to snack on."

"Make sure she doesn't snack on _yours_!" Misato joked.

"Oh, bite me!" Yūji snapped.

"I'll be sure to do that when you're asleep," she promised.

* * *

Soon, after another soak in the hot spring, everyone went to bed. They each slept in a futon, although Shiori and Shōtarō slept in a single futon for couples while Shinichi slept in the standard, one-person futon. However, his sleep was anything but restful.

Shinichi had another nightmare and woke up with a start. He glanced at his parents and was relieved to see that they were still asleep. He needed some fresh air so he silently snuck out of the room to take a walk in the inn. He would then go outside the building and maybe just sit at the engawa (veranda), doing some silent contemplation.

"Can't sleep?" Yuki asked as she took a seat next to her cousin.

"Bad dreams," he said and she handed him a soda. "Thanks."

"Bad enough that you need to sit out here?" she asked.

"Yes," he answered. "Nightmares...and shadows."

"Shadows?" she questioned.

"The organization that took me, they're called...SHADOW."

"SHADOW...?"

"And an appropriate name," Shinichi nodded. "They hide in the shadows and attack the world in the darkness. "That's what Aniki's gonna be fighting against, and I'm worried. It's just him against an entire organization."

"You're wrong, Shin," countered Yuki as she walked over to Shinichi. "He's not alone. He's got you, and us, and everyone." She stroked his cheek tenderly and kissed it. "I am prepared to do anything to ensure Onii-sama's safety, Shin...I'd even give my life if necessary."

"And I'm prepared to help him."

"Aw...isn't that sweet?" That voice was menacing and then he came out of the shadows, with red eyes and a large build.

"Is that...a killer whale with legs?" Yuki blinked.

"Another Mech-Beast," Shinichi growled.

"I'm Scalding Orca, and you're dead!" shouted the Mech-Beast as he bent his body over, aiming his blowhole at them. Shinichi could see the steam rising from it and his eyes widened in panic.

"WATCH OUT!" Shinichi shouted as he grabbed hold of Yuki and pushed the both of them to the ground as a jet of scalding hot water burst out of Scalding Orca's blowhole. The water hit the veranda and the heat of the water destroyed it. Shinichi, seeing the steam rising from the destroyed engawa, concluded that the water was so hot it could melt the flesh off their bones.

"Hah, so you're fast," said Scalding Orca and Shinichi gritted his teeth. He then took off in another direction. "Hey! Come back here!"

"Shin!" Yuki shouted.

"Get Aniki! I'll try to lead this monster away!" Shinichi shouted over his shoulder as Scalding Orca gave chase. Shinichi led him out of the inn's property and down the steps. The hulking monster tripped and fell before going rolling down the steps as Shinichi watched.

"Well, that was...easy," Shinichi remarked as he see Scalding Orca at the foot of the steps. The Mech-Beast recovered and sprayed his scalding hot water at Shinichi who leapt out of the way to dodge. Scalding Orca began climbing up the steps, shooting short bursts of hot water, and steam rose from the spots he hit. Shinichi began to sweat as Scalding Orca was getting closer.

"What's the matter, BLACK 13? Why don't you transform, huh? Use that armor of yours," taunted Scalding Orca.

"HYAH!" Shinichi lunged and tackled into Scalding Orca. They both went tumbling painfully down the steps. If Shinichi hadn't been cybernetically augmented, he wouldn't have been able to survive falling down the stairs which would've broken the bones of a normal person. Scalding Orca shoved Shinichi off him then punched him hard in the stomach. He then used a right cross on Shinichi and used a head butt to send him crashing against the steps. Shinichi groaned in pain from the blows.

"Say goodnight, BLACK 13," said Scalding Orca as he aimed his blowhole to boil Shinichi alive with his water. This was it. He was going to die.

"I'm sorry, everyone," Shinichi whispered as he closed his eyes to accept his fate.

"Let's get wild!"

**"ZERO FORM!"**

A foot planted into Scalding Orca drove him backwards and away from Shinichi. The young man looked at his armored cousin's back as he landed on his feet.

"Hey, Shin. Decided to start the party without me?" Liger said with a smile under his helmet.

"Now, this is great. Now I get to slag the both of you!" Scalding Orca said as he punched his palm. Liger went to Shinichi, raised his hand, and tagged him.

"Switching Out!" said Liger and he rushed to engage Scalding Orca. Claws ripped sparks off the Mech-Beast body who retaliated with powerful punches. Scalding Orca spun and smacked Liger away with his tail. Shinichi watched Scalding Orca was physically stronger than ZebraSkeleton and his hot water attack was a dangerous and deadly weapon. If only there was a way to take that advantage away. He wondered how well his cousin's armor could withstand Scalding Orca's hot water attack.

"Aniki, his primary attack is a jet of scalding hot water capable of melting skin!" shouted Shinichi.

"TAKE THIS!" Scalding Orca howled and he bent over to fire the scalding hot water jet at Liger, dousing him with it.

"Dammit...!" Liger cried. "This shit's hot!"

This wasn't good. If Yūji could feel the heat through his armor then his body might take damage just from exposure. He needed to try something. He watched as Scalding Orca smashed into Liger, sending the white Rider tumbling.

"What to do? What to do?" Shinichi questioned and then he spotted a rock. "Idea," he smirked.

Scalding Orca stomped on Liger's chest then kicked him away. He prepared to fire his ultra-hot water jet at him, but someone was about to get in the way of that.

Shinichi roared, "YAAAAAH!" as he jumped and landed on Scalding Orca.

"Hey, get off me!" Scalding Orca shouted as he thrashed about to throw Shinichi off him. Shinichi hung on tight and then he jammed a rock into Scalding Orca's blowhole. "GET OFF!" Scalding Orca finally threw Shinichi off him and he landed painfully on the ground. "Now, die!" He was about to attack when he was peppered by beam fire from Liger Zero.

The Rider made his way to his cousin as helped him up, Shinichi dusting himself off. "You OK?"

"Never better," Shinichi nodded. "I plugged up that hole of his, so we don't have to worry about him using that hot water."

Liger nodded and pounded his fists, "No problem." He dashed toward Scalding Orca, aiming his beam rifle and firing shots that peppered the Mech-Beast who blocked with his arms. Liger Zero then outstretched his right arm as his GN Sword folded out. The Rider reached behind him and flicked his Beam Daggers at his opponent, cutting into his shoulder piercing his abdomen without a problem. Scalding Orca had no defenses against the Rider's weapons as he swung down his sword, the Mech-Beast trying to block as his left arm was cut clean off.

"Damn you! Damn you!" Scalding Orca howled, trying to hold his dismembered limb to stop the bleeding of fluids. He attempted to fire his water jet attack but the blowhole was plugged. Thus, pressure built up and the tank containing his water supply ruptured and burst. Water spilled out from his mouth instead, hissing as steam rose up.

Liger Zero then pressed the magic button, ready to finish the Mech-Beast off.

**"FULL CHARGE!"**

His GN Sword retracted and he threw away his shield as his golden claws folded down, charging with golden energy, as Liger Zero dashed forward to deal the final blow.

**"Strike Laser Claw!"**Liger Zero roared as he rushed and slashed at Scalding Orca, digging his claws into the metal skin and damaging vital components. Scalding Orca thrashed as his body sparked erratically before he collapsed and exploded, cursing Liger and Shinichi loudly.

"He's gone," said Shinichi as he looked to Yūji. "You did it."

"_We_did it, you mean," said Yūji as his armor vanished after removing his belt. "How did he get so much water anyway?" The water should be limited in a closed container. That was just logic.

"It's H2O: two parts hydrogen, one part oxygen. He must have had a sort of converter in his body which allowed him to produce his own water for his attacks," said Shinichi. "Scalding Orca could also easily replenish his hydrogen and oxygen supply by the water he produces. Like an eternal cycle. Mix the two gasses to make water, and use the water to make the gas to make the water. Over and over."

"Makes sense," Yūji nodded. "Whoever makes these Mech-Beasts sure know what they're doing."

"But they have at least one flaw in their design," Shinichi remarked. "They always do."

"Good thing I got you for backup," Yūji smiled. "Now, if you don't mind, I'll be getting some well-deserved shut-eye."

"Yes..." Shinichi said. "Shut-eye..."

* * *

The staff and manager freaked out, wondering what happened to the engawa. It was like it had gotten wood rot overnight. Well, that was what happened when wood was exposed to incredibly hot water.

Sitting together in the dining hall for breakfast, Yūji handed Shinichi a microphone. "What is this for?" Shinichi asked.

"When you feel troubled, it makes you feel better just to sing your heart out," Yūji grinned.

"Yeah, sing for us, Shin-chan!" encouraged Shiori.

The Student Council cheered, "Sing! Sing! Sing! Sing!"

Seeing no way out of this, Shinichi decided to just go with it and choose a song. He scrolled the touchscreen of the karaoke machine down to look at song titles and picked one entitled. He found one and tapped the screen to accept. The music began to play and he waited for the lyrics to show to sing along to.

* * *

_**"Scalding Orca failed."**_

_**"Yes, but we managed to compile the combat data we need. We can begin construction at once."**_

_**"Project: Shadow Liger. Yes..."**_

**つづく**

* * *

**Kamen Rider Bushido: Wonder what "Shadow Liger" could be, huh? Maybe we get to find out next chapter? Maybe.**


	7. Adrenaline Rush

**Tail 7: Adrenaline Rush!**

It was 6 AM in the morning and the sun had barely risen. Standing on top a rooftop was a human figure who seemed ready to greet the day.

Shinichi wasn't always an adrenaline junkie, but this was the only way he could get a high out of life. As far as everyone knew, he was out jogging. Standing atop a tall building, he looked down at the edge. He was dressed in a black t-shirt with 'LIVE LIFE, LIVE FREE' written across it in white. He was also wearing hiking gloves and boots because of their grip and wearing knee-length shorts with knee pads.

"Alright," he said while adjusting his gloves. "Let's get this show on the road." He took several steps back, actually many steps back, before getting into the set position. "On my mark...get set..." He put on a look of determination. "GO!" Shinichi sprinted and ran for the edge before leaping off. He crossed the gap, appearing to be flying, before landing on the surface of the adjacent rooftop. He didn't stop at that and continued to run, leaping from one building to the next. This activity was exhilarating and in his opinion was way better than jogging.

"YAHOO!" he shouted. He crossed wide gaps, even ones impossible for people who had intense physical training. The artificial muscles in his legs allowed for this and he definitely would not fall unless he slowed down and lost momentum. His eyesight, being at optimum level, could see that he was running out of rooftop so he stopped, his boots skidding to a halt, and he smiled in satisfaction.

* * *

"I hate him! I hate him!" Daichi shouted.

"OK, what is it now?" Shogo deadpanned.

"You know I play COD, right?" Daichi questioned.

"Go on," Shogo prompted.

"Well, I was just about to get an achievement, when some asshole pwned me!" Daichi shouted.

"Does this 'asshole' got a name?" Yokoshima asked.

"Some new punk calling **n00bRap3r13 (Newb-Raper-Thirteen)**," grumbled Daichi.

"Well, I should tell you to just let it go," Shogo advised. "It's not like you'll ever meet the guy in person."

"Hey guys," said Yūji as he met up with his two friends at the shoe locker.

"Hey, Yūji. Where's Yuki and your cousin, Shinichi?" Shogo asked.

"Yuki's just running a little late. As for my cousin, he went out for a morning jog. Last time I saw him he was getting ready for school. He should be here before the first bell," said Yūji.

"He goes on morning runs a lot, doesn't he?" Shogo questioned.

"Yeah, he says it's a good workout, plus the morning air helps him to relax," said Yūji. He looked to Daichi who was looking pissed. "Why does Daichi look angry, again? What made him mad this time?"

"I'll tell you why! I got pwned by some asshole on COD!" snapped.

"Dude, let it go," Yūji advised, echoing Shogo's words earlier. "It's just a video game." Wrong thing to say.

"Just a video game? Just a video game!? _JUST A VIDEO GAME!?_" Daichi rose his voice. "It ain't just a video game, _Fudō-san_! It's Call of Duty! The best war game series ever made!"

"I actually prefer the Halo franchise," Shogo remarked.

"Give me a fighting game any day," Yūji added.

"Hey!" Daichi snapped. "I'm pissed! Don't either of you care!?"

"No," Shogo and Yūji answered in unison. Daichi scowled then stomped to class.

"Dude needs to get laid," Yūji commented.

* * *

"Banabara-kun!" a petite girl with a cat-like smile, long blue hair that reached her ankle and green eyes approached Shinichi's desk as soon as he arrived to class.

"Ah, Izumi-san," Shinichi greeted. "Ohayo!"

"Ohayo~!" she greeted. "So, saw you on COD last night! You were wicked!"

"Thanks," said Shinichi. "You didn't do too badly yourself."

"Honestly, I don't see why you like those stupid games so much," commented Hiragi Kagami, their Class Rep. "You should spend your free time more productively."

"But Kagamin," whined Izumi Konata , the petite bluenette, "Pwning n00bs is a productive use of our free time."

"But you're just shooting people. I read that a kid in America was so into those games he picked up a gun and started reenacting it at his school," said Kagami. "It was all over the news."

"That sounds horrible," grimaced Shinichi.

"Yeah, violent video games just turned a shut-in into a nutcase," said Kagami. "It goes to show how easily influenced the youth of the world are."

"Does that mean I'm a danger? Does that mean I'm gonna suddenly pick up a gun and start blowing holes in people?" Konata asked.

"You? I doubt it," said Kagami. "Banabara-san here has a better chance of going psycho like that." She laughed then noticed Shinichi's expression as he went pale. "Hey, are you OK?"

"Oh, me?" he smiled weakly. "Just...just fine..." he lied. "I...think I need to go now...to the bathroom."

"But homeroom is about to start," called Kagami as he stormed out the classroom. She looked to Konata incredulously, "Was it something I said?"

"You always scare the boys away, Kagamin! That's why you don't have a boyfriend," teased Konata.

"Ano, is Banabara-kun OK?" Hirasawa Yui asked the two girls.

"He looked sick. He suddenly went pale and said he was heading to the bathroom," said Kagami.

* * *

Shinichi splashed water over his face at the sink and looked at the mirror. Kagami's words still echoed in his mind. Sure, she meant it as a joke, but she was right that he had a better chance than Kagami to start going around killing people. He gripped the sides of the sink and took deep breaths.

"I'm not one of them, I'm not one of them, I'm not one of them, I'm not one of them," he chanted. He looked up at the mirror and recoiled as he saw BLACK 13's face. He blinked and recovered as he saw his own face in the reflection. "I'm...just...hallucinating," he attempted to convince himself, and calm himself as his heart pounded in his chest. "Just...just my imagination..." he reassured himself.

Or was it?

* * *

_Yeah, these are the kinda days I can get used to. Going to school, chillin' with the family and friends, etc. and all that. A lot has happened since I became a Rider. Goons broke into my dad's lab, I had to fight my cousin, robo-animal freaks kept coming' at me, and so on. Fortunately, they've only come after me and Shin. I get the feeling it's only a matter of time before they get smarter and start going for the others once they find out who I am. I guess all I can do for now is keep fighting and hope I come up with some leads in these guys. Maybe I should pay Kimura another visit. Guy's tight-lipped unless paid to talk, and a bit of a coward, but he always has some kind of info for me. Maybe I should introduce Shin to the guy too._

"Yūji-kun..."

Yūji snapped back to reality after being called by Michiru, smiling as he regained his composure. "What's wrong, Michiru?"

"Something's wrong with Shin-kun," she reported.

This got the Fudō's attention as his eyes narrowed. "Talk to me, Michiru. What happened?"

"Well, I was walking back to class after I used the little girls' room, and I saw him walk by. He looked pale, like he just saw a ghost or something," Michiru said.

_Well, this is swell. Odds are he's thinking about what these SHADOW guys did to him. I should talk to him and see what's up._

"Maybe he's just feeling sick," Yūji suggested. "I'll find him and take him to the school nurse."

"You're such a thoughtful big brother," Michiru praised. She knew that Yūji and Shinichi were cousins, but the Fudō acted more like a big brother to the Banabara.

"We're still blood, no matter what name we use, Michiru," Yūji thanked before kissing her forehead and making her blush with surprise. "I'm gonna go find him. Thanks for coming to me, Michiru."

"No problem," she blushed. She waved as she watched Yūji leave and mumbled, "Yūji-kun...kissed me~."

Yūji was down the hall as Neko-Chaos, Neko-Destiny, and Neko-Bubbles poofed into existence. Chaos and Destiny were on Yūji's shoulders while Bubbles sat on his head.

"Think something's wrong?" Neko-Chaos purred.

"If it concerns Shin, odds are there might be," Yūji assured. "And Michiru doesn't lie about anything."

"Un-Un-Un!" Neko-Bubbles nodded rapidly.

"Speaking of which," Neko-Destiny spoke up, "Are you going to choose a girl? Or will you choose them all?"

"Not the time for this, Destiny," Yūji frowned.

"Always dodging the topic," she shrugged with a sigh.

* * *

Shinichi, still pale, was weakly walking to class. Just what was wrong with him? Why was he feeling sick? He didn't have a fever, but his insides just felt painful. Was this psychological? Was this caused by stress? He leaned against the wall in the hallway, his face beading with a cold sweat. His breath was shallow and he slid down to sit on the floor, leaning against the wall. He suddenly felt cold and he looked at his hands as they trembled. His vision was becoming blurry as he shivered.

Yūji found him and he cried out, running to his cousin. "Shin!" He knelt down by his brother's side. "What's wrong?" He put his hand on Shinichi's forehead and recoiled in shock. "Holy shit, you're freezing..."

"Ani...Aniki...help me..." he begged.

Yūji flipped his phone open and speed dialed his mother. "C'mon, pick up, pick up," he pleaded.

_"Hello? Yūji, what is it?"_ Aki asked.

"It's Shin. Something's wrong with him. Come quickly!" Yūji told her then ended the call before lifting Shinichi up in his arms. He carried him quickly to the infirmary.

* * *

Shinichi was put on one of the infirmary beds. Yuji waited for his mom to show up and she did. She was with her medical supplies and as soon as she saw Shinichi, she began to examine him as Yuji just hung back and watched the medical specialist do her work.

"What's wrong with him, Mom?" Yūji asked as Aki checked her nephew.

"I don't know," said Aki. "Your father's the expert on cybernetics. I just...I don't know..."

"I do," said Shinichi as his eyes opened and he sat up.

"You shouldn't get up," advised Aki.

Yūji asked, "Shin, what's wrong?"

"I know what's happening to me," Shinichi told them. "I've been off the serum for too long."

"Serum?" Aki questioned.

"When they put these machines in me, there was a risk of my body rejecting them. To smoothen the assimilation, I was regularly given a dosage of a special drug to stabilize my body," he told them. "SHADOW does it with all their cyborgs. Keeps them in line."

"And since you left SHADOW, you haven't had any doses of it for weeks," Yūji realized. "How often do you need it."

"According to my schedule, I was supposed to get a dose last week," Shinichi said. "But it's been a week since then and now I'm suffering the effects."

"What's going to happen to you?" Yūji asked, worriedly.

"Well, first are the hallucinations, then my body temperature is going to go down until I become as cold as a corpse, and finally total system failure," Shinichi informed them. "In a week, if I don't get another dosage, my body is going to reject my cybernetics completely and I'm going to-"

"No! Don't say it! Don't you fucking say it!" Yūji snapped, interrupting Shinichi. He didn't want to hear it.

"Yūji, we better leave Shinichi-kun to rest," Aki advised. "Shinichi-kun, get some rest."

"Hai, Aunt Aki," nodded Shinichi and he laid back down to rest. Yūji and Aki exited the infirmary and closed the door.

"Fucking pricks...we just got him back...and now this...it's unfair..." growled Yūji through his teeth as he clenched his fists.

"It'll be OK, baby," Aki cooed as she hugged her only son. "We'll be able to help Shinichi...somehow..."

* * *

By lunchtime, Shinichi was feeling better and able to leave the infirmary. Aki wrote a note for him to give to show the teachers so they'd know he wasn't feeling very well. Aki's advice was for Shinichi not to overexert himself until they figured something out. Now, Milly had a bit of a surprise for everyone at lunch and called all the Student Council members to the Student Council building.

* * *

"Wow, look at this spread!" said Yokoshima as he saw the dishes covering the long table in the Student Council room. He saw lobster, a plate of fried potato wedges, vegetable salad, fruit salad, hamburger steaks, caviar, sushi, deep-fried breaded shrimp, fried chicken, and iced tea.

"Oh, I just had my private cooks whip up some things for us for lunch," said Milly.

"Aniki, is Ashford-kaichou a rich Ojou-sama?" Shinichi asked his cousin.

"Oh, that's right, I knew I forgot to mention that," Yūji remembered. "Milly's family actually holds a title of nobility. She's rich but she's so down to Earth and not spoilt."

"And once a month, she treats us to lunch," added Misato. She hated rich snobs so her first impression of Milly was that she was just a spoilt, rich princess. However, that was far from the truth. She was just friendly and eccentric.

"I guess it's good to have connections," said Shinichi as he filled his plate with sushi, fried chicken, and fried shrimp before taking a seat. "Arigatou, Ashford-kaichou."

"It's no problem," Milly smiled. "Now, everyone, please dig in! Or as you Japanese say: Itadakimasu!"

* * *

After lunch, and more classes, the final bell rang. There was no Student Council meeting as their lunch meeting counted as one. They just discussed Student Council business while they ate. The food was good and Shinichi, Yūji and Yuki ate their fill. Milly never asked for anything whenever she treat them food. She wasn't the type of person to ask for anything for return of a gesture of generosity and friendship. Still, such rich food, it was definitely the best lunch Shinichi had ever had in a while, and a huge one too.

Yūji decided that he was going to meet with Kimura and told Shinichi, "Hey, Shinichi. Wanna come with me to meet someone?"

"Who?" Shinichi asked.

"Just my informant," Yūji smiled. "I want to introduce you to him."

Yūji took Shinichi on his bike and they headed to the Satellite District of Neo-Domino City.

* * *

"What-up," Yūji greeted. Shinichi looked at the man named Kimura the Rat and realized that the man got his name for hanging around dirty alleyways.

"Oh, it's you," frowned Kimura. "Sorry, I don't have any info for you."

Yūji rolled his eyes. That was Kimura's usual line. It was a way for him to get some money. People who knew Kimura knew he always had info. He wouldn't be much of an information broker if he didn't have any info.

"Nah, not here for info," said Yūji. "Just wanted to introduce my kid cousin to you. This is Banabara Shinichi. Shinichi, meet Kimura the Rat."

"Nice to meet you," Shinichi bowed.

"Kid's got manners," smirked Kimura.

"So, do you have any information of any secret organizations laying in the shadows?" Shinichi asked.

"Look kid, whatever you've heard-" He suddenly paused as Shinichi held up a 5,000 yen note. Kimura snatched it out of his hand and pocketed it. "Well, you didn't hear it from me, but these guys have been around a lot longer than you may think and they're based all over the world. Rumor has it that they are involved in arms dealing; selling weapons on the black market and the kind of weapons tech they got is like nothing anyone has ever seen," said Kimura. "And I'm talking advanced like the shit you see on SciFi!"

"And what about kidnapping people?" Yūji prompted.

"Oh, that? Well, let's just say that they like to pick up their resources off the street," shrugged Kimura, "I don't think it's personal; just that these guys get resources from anywhere they can. Trust me, you shouldn't mess with these guys if you know what's good for you."

"They've already crossed the line with me," Yūji growled. Suddenly, they found themselves surrounded by men dressed in dark coats and fedoras. "What now?"

"It's the organization," Shinichi identified. It was like he could sense who they were. They took off their hats and fedoras and glared at the two cousins menacingly.

"Kimura, get to safety," said Yūji but then he noticed that Kimura had already gone. "Slippery rat," he mumbled.

"Come on, Aniki," said Shinichi eagerly. "Let's send these bozos running and crying." Yūji smiled in approval and stood side-by-side with Shinichi. With a non-verbal command, they rushed to attack their assailants. Shinichi used an armbar to knock one of them down then blocked a punch with his forearm. Pivoting on his heel he knocked the SHADOW grunt down with a roundhouse to the head. He ducked under a punch then elbowed the poor grunt in the gut before knocking him into the air with an uppercut, a move he followed up with a sidekick to send him flying to knock down a couple of his comrades. He leaned his head to the side to dodge a punch from behind and backfisted his opponent before grabbing his head and flipping him over his shoulder. He then stomped on his chest before using his body like a springboard to lunge at two troopers, knocking them down by hooking his arms around their necks and dragging them to the floor before punching them both in the head.

Yūji was actually pretty impressed on how well Shinichi was holding out on his own. Back when he was a kid, Shinichi wasn't able to defend himself from bullies so Yūji had to be there to help him out. Yūji taught him to defend himself but now Shinichi was fighting like a professional. This was obviously the organization's doing. These troopers seemed to be also superior to humans as Shinichi's blows had only incapacitated them. Shinichi had the strength to kill an average person with just a punch.

Yūji decided to take action and joined his cousin in the fight, bobbing and weaving as punched grunts in the face each time and knocking them out. While he had no weapons, he was taught to fight bare-handed so Yūji knew how to throw down with the best of them. Courtesy of the boxing lessons from his Uncle Jack.

Suddenly, Shinichi and Yūji were sent flying as bolts of energy caused an explosion that sent them both tumbling through the air before landing roughly on the ground. As the dust cleared, the two could make out a figure coming towards them. He was humanoid in shape, with a male build, covered in black carapace-like armor from head to toe. His chest resembled the underside of a beetle with its middle and hind-legs hugging his midsection and the forelegs draped over his shoulders. He had a beetle shell on his back. attached to his wrists were blades which were curved and jagged, resembling the mandibles of a Stag Beetle. His head was covered by a samurai-like helmet, a kabuto, with stag-beetle-like horns and a fanged face mask.

"Feel honored that you will be slain by me, Saber Beetle!" the SHADOW Mech-Beast declared.

"Shinichi, stand back," said Yūji as he took out the Liger Belt. "I'll squash this guy like he was-ARGH!"

Shinichi was shocked. In the blink of an eye, Saber Beetle had moved to Yūji's side and grabbed his wrist, forcing him to drop the Liger Belt. The Mech-Beast had Yūji's arm bent at an unnatural angle and Shinichi knew that his cousin's arm was broken. Saber Beetle released Yuji and watched as he hissed in pain, holding his broken arm.

Saber Beetle picked up the Liger Belt and nodded. SHADOW was after the belt for its potential. Now, he looked at Yūji and raised his wrist-mounted sword to cleave his head off his neck when all of a sudden he was tackled away. Saber Beetle then felt the Liger Belt being ripped from his grip before a foot drove itself into his gut to send him skidding backwards.

"So, the traitor wants to fight me," said Saber Beetle as he focused his eyes upon Shinichi. Shinichi dropped the belt in front of Yūji and strode towards Saber Beetle.

"Shin...?" Yūji questioned.

Shinichi spoke seriously, "I swore to myself that I'd never use the armor SHADOW gave me." He narrowed his eyes in anger, "but...but you assholes have gone too far!"

Saber Beetle laughed, "And what is a coward like you going to do about it?"

Shinichi put his hand over his belt buckle and closed his eyes, "I...am going...to crush you. Henshin!" He split the buckle open to reveal the symbol. He charged at Saber Beetle as a wireframe appeared around his body. Pieces of armor materialized before connecting to his body. The helmet was the final component to form as it covered his head and the red eyes flashed.

"Slashing Sonic!" Shinichi shouted as he generated his energy blades and swung. Sparks flew as Saber Beetle raised his blades to engage the armored Shinichi who then followed up by knocking Saber Beetle's arms aside to land a jump kick against his chest. Crossing his energy blades, he rushed at Saber Beetle again, this time with his energy wings activated. "Acceleration!" he roared as he moved like a blur and Saber Beetle matched his speed. All Yūji could see were two blurs, crashing against each other, followed by sparks exploding in a series as the two combatants continued to clash.

Shinichi was attacking Saber Beetle furiously who responded in kind. Saber Beetle cut into Shinichi chestpiece and sparks flew as the jagged edge of his blade bit into the area. Shinichi gritted his teeth as he endured the pain before violently punching Saber Beetle in the face. He then performed a series of kicks that Saber Beetle blocked but his swords were snapped in half by them. "What!?" Saber Beetle uttered in shock and received a boot to the head, snapping off one of his horns.

They returned to normal speed as Yūji blinked. He saw that Shinichi's armor had taken some damage but so had Saber Beetle, evident by his missing horn. Enraged, Saber Beetle shot a bolt of energy from his remaining horn but Shinichi dodged it. The next volley of energy bolts were then deflected by Shinichi's Slash Sonic and whatever the deflected bolts hit exploded, safely from Yūji and Shinichi.

Deactivating his Slash Sonic, Shinichi darted towards Saber Beetle and shot his arm forward. Saber Beetle's eyes widened as his body went rigid. Looking down, he saw that Shinichi had driven his whole hand into his chest and was gripping something. He then tore his arm out with something held in his hand then pivoted on his heel to perform a kick. He bent his body over and shot his right leg upwards, nailing Saber Beetle with a reverse high kick that sent him airborne where he exploded.

Shinichi was holding Saber Beetle's heart and he smiled as his armor vanished. He jogged over to Yūji and knelt down next to him.

"Are you OK?" Shinichi asked his cousin.

"Shin, that was awesome!" said Yūji.

Shinichi shrugged, "Maybe, but I'll try not to do it often so I don't steal your thunder."

"What's that you got in your hand?" Yūji asked.

"His heart. I tore it out of his chest," said Shinichi.

"Wow, badass..."

"Hey, do you want to know something, Aniki? The serum I need, a sample of it is right in this heart," said Shinichi.

Yūji could only stare at his cousin as he tried to contemplate his words. "...Huh?"

"The serum I need actually runs through the Mech-Beast's system, so all we need to do is to take a sample from this heart, study the formula, and synthesize the serum," Shinichi explained.

"That...actually makes sense," Yūji admitted. Now Shinichi didn't need to...

Shinichi suddenly vomited blood and then he collapsed while still holding the heart.

"SHIN!" Yūji screamed.

**つづく**

* * *

**KR Bushido: So yeah, Yūji suffers from a broken arm. Maybe he's due for a break, no?**

**KR Chrome: And Shinichi breaks his promise in order to protect his cousin. Hopefully he does it often.**

**A/N: Izumi Konata and Hiragi Kagami are characters from Lucky Star**


	8. 3R: Rest, Relaxation and Recuperation

**Tail 8: 3R**

Shinichi came to, staring at an unfamiliar white ceiling. "Ugh...what happened..." He sat up and found himself wearing hospital robes. He looked down at his hand to see an IV tube connected to the back of his hand and followed the tube up to the IV bag which hung from an IV pole. He also saw that he was connected to a heart monitor. Also, he was wearing a breathing mask. "What...?" He removed the breathing mask.

When a nurse came to check up on Shinichi, she dropped her clipboard and gasped to see him awake. She then rushed out. Shinichi blinked and then Aki and Shiori came in. His mother gasped and covered her mouth, eyes, brimming with tears.

"Kaa-chan-URK!" Shiori seemingly teleported to his side and hugged him tightly.

"I'm so glad to see you awake!" she cried out happily.

"Yes, yes, I'm happy to be awake too..." he said to her. It was all coming back to him. He'd fought Saber Beetle, and suddenly he passed out. "What happened? How long was I out?"

"Two weeks," Aki reported.

"TWO WEEKS!?" he exclaimed in shock.

"Two weeks," said Aki. "Yūji called us because it was an emergency. Your Uncle Jack and Uncle Crow responded and picked you both up and rushed you both to the hospital. You didn't look good but Yūji told us you had a sample for a serum that could save you. So, I had the best people in my medical lab synthesize a batch and we injected a dose into you."

"And that took two weeks?" Shinichi asked.

"It actually took a week to synthesize a batch when you were being stabilized," said Aki. "We administered the dose to you a week ago but you didn't wake up."

"Sometimes it doesn't work straight away," said Shinichi. "So, how's Aniki?"

"He'll need to keep his arm in a cast for a few weeks, but other than that he's fine," Aki said. "He told us what you did. You really saved his life."

"Well, I just hope I don't have to do that often," he said. SHADOW seemed to bring out the worst in him.

"You should get some rest and real food in you," said Aki.

"I'll go get my baby boy his food," said Shiori, pinching her son's cheek. "He needs his nutrients."

Aki took a chair and sat down, "So, Yūji has told me that you've been having some problems controlling your strength."

"Yeah, which is why I try to avoid unnecessary confrontations with normal people," said Shinichi. He could easily snap a person's wrist or shatter their skulls with a punch.

"You might need some kind of power regulator so you'll have normal human level strength," Aki nodded. "Fortunately, Yūsei's been working on something like that."

"He has?" Shinichi asked.

"He should have it ready soon," said Aki. "Oh, and I advise you to rest and stay for some tests."

"Sure thing," Shinichi nodded as he lied back in bed. Rest sounded good right now.

* * *

Yūji sighed as he lied in bed, his arm in a cast, as he stared into nothing. It was bad enough that he had his arm broken; what made things worse was the fact that it was his _right_arm. He'd been hospitalized for 2 weeks and he already felt like he was losing his mind. Well, he couldn't argue with his mother. All he could do was sit tight and let his injuries heal.

"Things don't look good for you," Neko-Chaos noted as he poofed into existence, along with Neko-Destiny and Neko-Bubbles.

"Great, my useless conscience," Yūji sighed.

"You don't have to be so cold, Yūji," Neko-Destiny reprimanded.

"Un-Un-Un!" Neko-Bubbles nodded

"I've missed 2 weeks of classes because of this shit and I've been stuck in this fucking bed for the most part," he reminded. "Just be glad you three are just in my head or else I'd strangle you all."

"Who are you talking to?" Hana asked. Yūji yelped as he heard her and looked to see her come in.

"Holy shit, Hana... You almost gave me a heart attack," he rasped.

"Forgive me," she bowed. "I just thought I'd pay you a visit when I heard you talking."

Yūji smiled, "Thanks. Seeing you always helps."

"I just can't believe you broke your arm when you fell off a motorcycle," she said. That was the cover story. Saying that he got his arm broken by a beetle-themed android was going to raise too many questions. He hated lying to his friends but he couldn't risk letting them know about him being a Rider. Odds were that SHADOW would find out about them and use them as targets.

"Hey, don't worry so much," Yūji smiled, "Shit happens. Just glad to be standing, for the most part."

"You're sitting in a bed," she corrected.

"Minor setback," he shrugged, "You know how I hate sitting still, except for when I'm asleep."

"If you don't rest how can you heal?" she questioned. She sat down and opened up the box she was carrying. "I got you these sweets." They were assorted Japanese sweets, her favorite, and Yūji seemed to like them too.

"You're too good to me," Yūji beamed. "What would I do without you?"

"You'll figure it out," Hana smirked, "Now, since your right arm is currently out of commission, let me feed you."

"Alright," he surrendered, blushing a little. It'd been a long time since he'd been fed by anyone, let alone being fed by a girl.

"Here we go..." Hana worked to open the box of sweets as she held it out, Yūji opening his mouth as she popped a snack into his mouth. She smiled as she watched Yūji chew with a smile. "Glad to see your current condition hasn't affected your appetite."

"Nothing can ever kill my appetite," Yūji boasted, "Especially when I have a beautiful friend to feed me."

The compliment made the goth blush brightly as she sputtered, "D-Don't misunderstand...! I'm only doing this for you because you can't feed yourself properly!"

"Thanks, Hana," he smiled honestly, "I mean it."

She calmed down, still blushing, and smiled, "No problem..."

"And...CUT!"

The two blinked and turned to see Milly recording the event with her phone, with Misato and Michiru watching with grins.

"That was perfect!" Milly grinned as she waved her phone.

"I'll say," Misato smirked.

"No fair! I wanna feed Yūji-kun," Michiru whined.

"Then let's all feed Yūji!" Milly declared.

Minutes later, Aki knocked on the door and saw her son being fed by Milly and the others. She couldn't help but be amused as she observed her son's predicament. "How is our patient?"

"He's calm," Hana reported.

"We're feeding Yū-kun," Michiru beamed.

"Well, don't make too much noise. He needs rest and recuperation," advised Aki.

"Hey Mom, how long until I can get this cast off me?" asked Yūji.

"A couple more weeks," she said. Medical science had advanced so far so the time it would take for bones to heal had been cut. It just took the right kind of drugs to make it happen. Still, a lot of time was needed for the bones to properly and the patient needed to be cooperative and rest so that his bones could heal properly.

"So, how's Shin?" Yūji asked. He'd been asking that question almost everyday since they got to the hospital. He hadn't looked very good when Jack and Crow had picked him up. While unconscious, he was convulsing like he was having a seizure and Yuji could actually see his veins turn black like he had poison in his bloodstream. He understood that Shinichi was just enduring the pain. Aki used drugs to keep Shinichi stable and made sure he was monitored. The drug had been finished a week after Shinichi and Yūji were put in the hospital and Yūji wanted to know again if his cousin was alright.

"He's doing fine," said Aki. "He just woke up." Yūji's eyes widened. "He's with his mother now."

"Can I go see him?" Yūji asked.

"Not until later once he's regained his strength," she advised.

The cover story for Shinichi was that he suddenly fell ill, really ill, and needed to stay in the hospital until he fully recovered. They really couldn't tell Yūji's friends about what really happened without bringing up more questions.

* * *

"Those cybernetics of his make him strong, stronger than he used to be," Yūji began, "He was kind of sloppy though, his attacks were powerful, and there was some coordination, but something tells me he has no real battle style."

"Makes sense, since we never really taught him," Yūsei nodded.

"Shinichi-kun never had the kind of fighting spirit that you and the others have," Aki pointed out.

"Until now, that is," said Yūsei. Yūji had described Shinichi's fighting style, or lack of it, as ferocious with the intent to kill. Yūji had even told his father that Shinichi had initially sworn off using the BLACK 13 armor because of what it represented. "He only broke the promise he made to himself because you were in danger, Yūji."

"Good to know that he still has a good head on his shoulders and his heart in the right place," said Yūji.

"Shinichi's scared of his power, as you're aware," said Aki. "He's afraid he might slip up and hurt someone. When will that power regulator be ready?"

"Shin needs it bad," Yūji said. Shinichi had slipped up during a game of ping-pong and bowling, but the Student Council had just brushed it off. They were more tolerant of the strange and unusual and just thought Shinichi was just way stronger than he looked. One time, Yūji caught Shinichi bench-pressing a minivan.

"I should have it done in a few days," Yūsei nodded.

"You know, I find it strange that this SHADOW group hasn't attacked you both when right now they have a really good opportunity," said Aki. "You're both hurt and in a hospital. It wouldn't be hard for them to take you both out."

"Maybe they're working on something more important," Yūji shrugged. "I don't care as long as they stay away from Shin."

"Well, just use this time to heal," Yūsei advised.

"You got it," his son agreed. Rest sounded good right about now. And if it meant getting a little attention from the girls? Bonus.

* * *

Shinichi hated being bored. Fortunately, his mother had given him a tablet so he could have something to do. Right now he was reading an E-Book when someone knocked on the door. "Come in," he said.

"Konnichiwa, Banabara-san," Yui greeted. She didn't come alone. Along with her was Kagami and a tall, curvy pinkette with long hair and glasses called Takara Miyuki. She was an intelligent girl too, despite her airheadedness, and also like the Big Sister figure to her friends.

"Ah, Hirasawa-san, Hiragi-san and Takara-san," smiled Shinichi as he put the tablet down. "You came to visit."

"Yes," said Miyuki as she put the bouquet of flowers she had with her into a vase. "We wanted to see how you were doing. We were told you were sick but weren't allowed any visitors until now."

"We also met your mom in the hallway," said Yui. "We saw her exit your room and we told her we were your classmates."

"Anyway, you've missed out a lot at school so here are some notes," said Kagami as she handed Shinichi a few printouts from class. "I don't want one of my classmates to fall behind."

"Oh, and Ui-chan made cookies!" Yui beamed.

Shinichi accepted the printouts and the boxes of cookies. He felt touched. These girls were his classmates and while he distanced himself from his class, they still wanted to get to know him. He was very helpful in class and was nice and polite. Saving Yui had helped make a good impression on his classmates and they approached him in a friendly manner because of it.

"Thank you," he said, smiling. He appreciated the fact that they came to visit to see if he was alright.

"We hope you get well soon," Miyuki smiled. He blushed a bit. Why did she have to look so cute smiling like that?

* * *

Two days later, Yūji and Shinichi were allowed to leave the hospital and they returned home with their respective families. Yūji still had his cast on. As for Shinichi, he had a clean bill of health. Whatever that serum did was miraculous as his injuries had all completely healed. Still, he needed to rely on that serum to survive so new batches were being made and stored in the hospital in case he needed another dosage. Shinichi had told Aki that the serum was also used to heal severe injuries on cyborgs. When she asked if the serum could be used on normal patients, Shinichi told her, "You really shouldn't, Aunt Aki. It ain't pretty." She took her nephews word for it. She had tested the serum on a laboratory mouse and said mouse had exploded. Because of that, she was not about to use the serum on a normal human being. It was a miracle that it had worked on Shinichi without any harmful side-effects but that was because he was already used to it after taking it for the past two years.

More good news came as Yūsei was nearly finished with Shinichi's power regulator. He had problems controlling his strength in human form and was afraid he might hurt someone by accident. He didn't want that to happen.

Yūji was sitting in his wheel chair, staring at the opposite wall as he tossed a handball and caught it repeatedly. Only thing was he was using his left arm. It was his way of training his left arm for more activities.

"You're still sitting in that thing, Onii-sama?" Yuki asked. "You know you don't have to, right?"

"Hm?" Yūji snapped to attention as he turned to see his sister. "Oh, yeah... Just thinking, basically. We're essentially dead in the water right now and those SHADOW ass-hats haven't attacked us. It's weird..."

Yuki too noticed this, suggesting, "Perhaps they are giving you a fighting chance. If you're handicapped, it would make their victory too easy..."

"Chivalrous bad guys," Yūji mused, "That's something new."

"You should make the best of this then and take time to heal," Yuki suggested. She then started removing her clothes, her brother bugging out as he jumped back in his seat.

"What are you doing?!" he demanded.

Yuki had removed her clothes to reveal a white nurse outfit she was wearing that hugged her body tightly She also wore silk stockings with visible garters and also the cute nurse cap on top. "Time to treat you, Onii-sama..."

* * *

Meanwhile, Yūsei had called Shinichi to Neo Domino's Department of Science & Technologies. The young man arrived on a **2010 Yamaha V-Max **motorcycle which used to belong to his father and had been kept in great care. Parking the bike, Shinichi dismounted and took off the helmet, which he tucked under his armor. He remembered coming here before, to steal the Liger Belt, when he used to be one of SHADOW's pawns. He went in and headed up to Yūsei's lab.

"Oh, hello, Shinichi," said Yūsei as he gave his teen nephew a hug, which Shinichi returned. "Glad you could make it."

"You sounded urgent," said Shinichi. "So I came."

"Good, well, there's something I need you to do," said Yūsei and he handed Shinichi a steel bar. "Here, bend that."

Shinichi did, effortlessly, without showing signs of exertion.

"Can you unbend it?" Yusei asked and Shinichi did. Yūsei inspected the metal bar. It was like it hadn't been bent. "You really are super-strong."

"Thanks, I try to keep it under control," said Shinichi. He didn't know what the point of bending the steel bar was but his uncle had asked him to.  
"Come on, I need to run a few more tests," Yūsei said.

* * *

"Playing Nurse Maid, kids?" Aki asked as she checked in on Yūji's condition and saw her daughter and son together. It was Aki's day off.

"Kinda," Yūji blushed. He was pinned down in his bed by Yuki as she was about to give him a mouth thermometer. The weird thing was that she held the other side in her mouth.

"Well, play nice," she smiled. "Oh, and Yūsei called. Shinichi's at the lab right now."

"Ah, OK then," Yūji nodded. Aki giggles as she left her children to themselves, closing the door.

"Let us continue..." Yuki said as she looked down at her brother.

"Wonderful," Yūji deadpanned.

* * *

Shinichi stood in front of a stack of five cinderblocks. He raised his hand and brought it down to chop them in half, which he did, breaking the blocks in two. Nearby was a pile of cinder blocks, each broken in half by what Shinichi had done. Yūsei was taking in the data.

"OK, I think that's enough," said Yūsei. He then took something out of his lab coat and handed it to Shinichi. "Here, put this on your neck."

"A collar?" Shinichi deadpanned, looking at the offered object. "You want me to put on a collar?"

"It's male choker, for decoration, and more," said Yūsei. "Remember when you said you wanted a way to help regulate your strength? Here it is." Shinichi blinked and took the black choker from his uncle. There was a dial to regulate his strength. He put it on and Yūsei nodded. He set up another stack of cinderblocks. "Alright, now try to break them again," Yūsei instructed and Shinichi did just that. However, unlike before, the cinderblocks did not break. Blinking, he tried again, and again, and again, adding more force. But still the blocks did not break. He stared at his hand and then he clenched his fist in wonder.

"Special circuitry and micro chips emit signals to the circuitry in your brain, telling them to relax the cybernetics throughout the rest of your body," Yūsei explained. "As long as you keep the collar on, you don't have to worry about breaking anything, or anyone, accidentally."

"Thanks, Uncle Yūsei," Shinichi smiled in appreciation.

"You can even use that choker to learn how to hold back too so you won't need it once you get used to holding back your true strength," added Yūsei. "Oh, and I also have your belt."

"I've been wondering where it was," said Shinichi. "You've been studying it, haven't you? Well, do you know what makes it tick?"

"It's an impressive piece of tech," said Yūsei.

"Well, you can keep it for study. I'd rather not have to use it if I can help it," said Shinichi.

"I don't think that's a good idea, Shinichi," Yūsei told him. "You used it to protect Yūji."

"Yes, and that's the last time I will ever use it," Shinichi swore.

"Actually, I think it's better that you do use it. I know you don't feel comfortable using their tech, but think about it. You're fighting back with the tech they gave you. It's like adding insult to injury," Yūsei stated. "And Yūji could use the backup."

"You're right," Shinichi admitted. "I... I'm just so damn upset over this," he confessed. "I should have let Aniki take me to school instead of getting on that bus."

"What's done is done," Yūsei sighed. "And you're back with us now. Don't think about what might've been or could've been anymore."

"Right, I understand," Shinichi nodded. It was two years ago, so he obviously couldn't do anything about it. "I'm gonna go see how Aniki's doing. Thanks for the help, Uncle Yūsei."

* * *

A knock came at Yūji's door and Shinichi opened it, smiling and calling out, "Hey, Aniki, check out what Uncle Yūsei made...for me." He blinked, rubbing out any sleepies in his eyes, and looked to see his cousin tied up in bandages like a mummy, with Yuki sitting on top of him in a nurse outfit and her shirt open, her bra showing, as she wore white gloves and a thermometer in her mouth.

"MMMFF! MF-FGHHH-HFGH!" Yūji tried to scream through the bandages, begging for assistance.

"Shin-chan... Please go call Milly and the others," Yuki requested, "I forgot to do so, and we all need to 'help' Onii-sama heal."

"...Actually...I'm gonna go home...where stuff makes sense...You both do whatever..." said Shinichi awkwardly as he turned on his heels and exited, closing the door behind him. "Yuki-chan, you and your Brother Complex," Shinichi murmured, shaking his head in amusement.

* * *

**STUDENT COUNCIL ROOM**

"You're all lucky you're my friends," Yūji grumbled.

"What? You were so cute all tied up like that," Milly mused.

"Such behavior," Hana grumbled with a blush. "To think I respected you..."

Yūji pointed at his twin accusingly, "Her fault."

"At least you didn't get hurt," Michiru pointed out.

"Well, we didn't hurt you _yet_," Misato grinned. "And seeing you tied up and submissive was such a turn-on!"

"I doubt what you did helped much," Yuji retorted, pointing at his right arm which was still in a cast.

"Everytime... This always happens," Yokoshima grumbled from his seat in the meeting room.

"Just let it go," Daichi sighed. "So what if Yūji can attract a lot of girls? It's just natural for him."

"I think it's his animal magnetism," Shogo speculated.

This got Yokoshima's attention as he asked, "And what kind of animal would he be?"

**"His birthday is in late July,"** Chiaki signed. **"That makes him a Leo. So it would make sense if women were attracted to his charm, generosity, and overall charisma. Not to mention he's a gentleman towards women and he can sing."**

While Chiaki's explanation made sense, Daichi and Yokoshima couldn't help but imagine a chibified Yūji in a lion costume going, "_Gao~!_" The boys couldn't help themselves as they broke out in immediate laughter.

Hana noticed this and frowned, "What is wrong with those two...?"

"Boys are just idiots," Misato shrugged.

* * *

**FRIDAY...**

It was the afternoon, after school of a new day as the gang were at the baseball field, watching the girls' softball team play.

Shinichi decided to speak up and asked, "What are we doing here again?"

"Yokoshima just likes checking out the girls," Daichi sighed. He pointed to Yokoshima with a pair of binoculars, drooling as he was checking out some feminine legs. "See?" The bloomers left the girls' legs exposed. Those beautiful, long and slender legs.

"Be careful. You don't want a stray ball to hit you," Shinichi warned. He then glanced at the girls. Misato was cooking meat skewers over a barbeque grill. She did grill vegetables for Daichi was a vegetarian. Misato picked up the cooked ones and put them on a plate before handing it to Michiru to give to Yūji.

"I'm hungry," said Shinichi as he stood up to get himself a plate of meat skewers.

"Get me some grilled veggies while you're at it," said Daichi.

"Hai, hai," sighed Shinichi. He could actually call the Student Council friends now. They were a bit...well...hard to describe. They each had unique personalities. He wondered how they earned their positions in the first place.

The festivities were interrupted by the roars of bike engines as delinquents (possibly from another high school) were riding circles around each other in the field and yelling out. The girls were disturbed by the behavior and exited the field, staying on the sidelines as they watched.

This got Shinichi's attention as he frowned, "What's going on?"

"Looks like some kinda raid," Yokoshima suggested as he watched through his binoculars. "Odds are they're from another school. "This is the most popular school in town, after all, so I guess they don't like that."

"Buncha asswipes," Misato growled.

"Stupid fuckers," Yūji growled as he tried to get up before being held back by Yuki.

"You can't...you're injured," she objected.

"Like I'm gonna let that stop me," he countered. Gasps were heard and everyone looked to see a girl with long, grey-silver hair and blue eyes. She wore the Neo Domino High's uniform for girls and white socks. "Who's she?"

"Looks like she's gonna lecture them," Yokoshima snickered as he watched.

"Hey, now I recognize her," Milly spoke up. "That's Sakagami Tomoyo."

"Tomoyo?" Yūji had never seen her before, much less the others.

"Yeah, she transferred in a few months ago as a Junior, like us," she explained.

"I honestly rather not make a fuss over this nonsense," the girl stated, "But your childish antics are causing trouble for everyone else, so you'd best leave now so we can avoid any unnecessary trouble."

The delinquents rode towards Tomoyo but she jumped out of the way and they fell with their bikes.

"Woah, did you see that!?" exclaimed Shinichi.

"See it? All I saw was those guys getting closer and then they're kissing the dirt," Daichi blinked. "That chick is pretty strong...and quick."

Quick was just an understatement. Shinichi's augmented eyes had seen what Tomoyo had done to the delinquents charging at her. She was faster than the naked eye could see and Shinichi had witnessed her executing a series of kicks in quick succession. Judging from what he'd seen, it was well under a hundred kicks in the blink of an eye. She couldn't be a normal person, could she?

_OK, while I know there are people out there that aren't exactly "normal," what I just saw can't even be described as abnormal. That...was just **badass**. Sure, I've seen what my father and uncles can do, and they even told me stories of their whacky adventures from when they were younger. But this girl? She was something else._

"Damn..." was all Yūji could say as he was awestruck by what he'd just witnessed.

Milly noted his reaction and smirked, "Looks like someone's fallen in love~!"

The comment made Yūji snap back to reality as he blushed and stuttered, "...What are you talking about!?"

"I see the way you're looking at her," she teased, "So you like girls who know how to fight back? It's no wonder you get along with Misato so well too~"

"Aniki," said Shinichi seriously. "Can I talk to you, in private?"

Yūji blinked, "Oh, right. Sure."

Yūji and Shinichi stood up as the latter pulled him aside.

"What's up?" Yūji asked.

"We need to keep an eye on that girl. SHADOW is always looking to 'recruit' people with exceptional skills and she has a very exceptional fighting skills. If they haven't learnt of her by now, they will soon," Shinichi cautioned.

"Yeah, you're right," Yūji nodded. He'd almost forgotten about SHADOW, due to the peace. "You got a point."

"Well, then go on and talk to her, Aniki."

"What the fu-," he blinked, "Why me?"

"You're interested in her, right? You should go talk to her and see what she's like," Shinichi reasoned, "Maybe you can find out the reason behind her skill."

"Yūji!" Yokoshima called as he bounded over to the cousins. "Would you come with me for a bit?"

_'This won't end well,' _Yūji thought.

* * *

"Faked it?"

"Yeah, I mean there's no way a girl can beat a guy," Yokoshima boasted.

_Wonderful... Yokoshima and his unnecessary male pride. This usually happens when he feels threatened by someone. I'm always the one to bail him out, but I think Yokoshima getting some punishment is something he needs..._

"I bet you paid those guys off to start trouble so you can gain popularity," Yokoshima continued, earning mutters from the surrounding students.

"This is your lucky day," Tomoyo nodded. "I never planned on taking on any of the students here, but I can make an exception for you."

Yūji knew where this was going, backing away slowly to avoid any conflict with Tomoyo as he had only an idea of what she was capable of. Yokoshima clearly didn't know who, or what, he was really dealing with.

"You're so adorable, trying to act so tough," Yokoshima chuckled.

"I'd rather make this self-defense, so go ahead and attack first," she welcomed.

"FINE BY ME!" Yokoshima abandoned all thinking at that moment as he charged in without a care.

_It was at that moment when I remembered a rumor about girl who was strong beyond all belief. She was said to be beautiful too, and she would fight against oppressors that targeted the weak. There was never any malice in her as she slayed all who opposed her, a blur of speed and strength that knew no equal._

"Well, at least that's what I heard," Yūji finished as he told Yokoshima, who was lying on the ground all bruised up.

"Tell me all that...sooner, dammit," Yokoshima groaned.

"Do me a favor and don't bother me again," Tomoyo requested as she turned to leave...

"Hey," Yūji called out, "Can I get a minute?"

She stopped in her steps, turning back to face Yūji. "Need something?"

Yūji walked over to Tomoyo, standing next to her, but not facing the girl, as he whispered, "You're definitely strong, so I feel I should say this; please be careful."

"Something troubling, huh," she whispered.

"I'm sure you know about what happened at the Halloween party, right?"

"I was out sick that day, but I heard some kind of monsters attacked the school," Tomoyo nodded.

"I was there," he nodded. "I wanna say; those guys work for a group called SHADOW. I don't know much, but they like to target exceptionally strong people. Odds are they might find out about you, if they haven't already. So please be careful."

"I appreciate the advice," she nodded, "I'll keep everything you said in mind. And you are?"

Yūji smiled and raised his left hand, "Fudō Yūji. It's nice to meet you."

She joined him in a handshake, scrutinizing Yūji, as she returned, "Sakagami Tomoyo. I'll be sure to remember you, Fudō-kun." After their handshake, the released and went their opposite ways. Tomoyo wasn't naive, as she subtly gripped a small piece of paper in her left hand. Yūji had slipped it to her during the handshake. Seeing how serious he was, it couldn't hurt to be more cautious and keep a sharp eye out for anything odd.

* * *

"So, how did it go?" Shinichi asked.

"Gave her my number and told her about SHADOW," Yūji informed.

Shinichi's eyes widened, "You actually told her the organization's _name_? Didn't she wonder how you knew?"

"She didn't ask any questions. Seems as though I was able to get through to her without much of a problem. Besides, if she didn't ask now then odds are she'll ask me soon."

"We'll just have to keep our eye out for organization stooges," Shinichi said seriously, arms crossed. His eyes wandered left and right. "Anybody could be a spy."

"Cameras too," Yūji added. "For all we know, those fuckers could plant cameras anywhere...maybe _everywhere_." When Aki had operated on Shinichi's brain to remove the implant, she had discovered that there was an additional implant that made Shinichi's eyes into cameras to transmit images to the organization. She managed to remove that too.

"Yes," said Shinichi as he rubbed his temples. He gave out a sigh, "But we're just two people against an entire organization. Do we even stand a chance?"

"You forget, Shin, we're _Fudōs_," Yūji grinned, "You don't fuck with us and expect to walk away without a scratch."

"I'm just a Fudo by blood, Aniki. Kaa-chan is Uncle Yūsei's sister," Shinichi countered.

"A Fudō is a Fudō, no matter the name, as long as the blood flows in their veins," Yūji retorted as he put his arm around Shinichi's shoulders.

* * *

**"Is it ready?"**

**"Yes, it is ready. We can soon begin the field test."**

**"Excellent. Now, we shall see how Kamen Rider Liger can stand up to Shadow Liger."**

**"There is no contest. Shadow Liger is superior."**

**"Shadow Liger...speak."**

A pair of yellow eyes glowed in the darkness, replying, **"I hear...and obey..."**

**"Your mission?"**

**"...Exterminate...Kamen Riders."**

**つづく**

* * *

**KRB: OK, here we go. Things may get crazy! What is this "Shadow Liger"? His mission is obvious: take out our boys! Will this threat in the darkness succeed? Oh, and just so you know, Shadow Liger has the same voice as the Ultra-Bots from Samurai Jack. They were awesome.**


	9. Predator in the Night

**KR Chrome: By now, Yūji's arm has already healed. It happens in Tokusatsu all the time, so don't worry about it.**

* * *

**Tail 9: Predator in the Night**

There had been disturbing reports on the news of wild animal attacks happening in the city. People brought to the hospital had claimed that they were attacked by a large cat which left severe wounds to their bodies. Things like large, bleeding scratches across various parts of their body. The police and animal control were on high alert. According to witnesses, it was the size of a man, walked on all fours, and had sharp claws and fangs.

Shinichi was with his mother and father and was reading the paper at the breakfast table. His eyes narrowed at the news report. It was the 5th attack this month. This concerned Shinichi a lot. SHADOW had yet to attack him or Yuji for weeks and he had doubts that they had lost interest. He wondered if these reports of a wild animal attack were somehow connected to SHADOW. He took a bite out of his cheese toast and contemplated the issue.

"You should be going, Shinichi," said Shōtarō. "Or you'll be late for school."

"Oh, right," said Shinichi as he finished his breakfast and drank his juice. "See you both later."

* * *

"And so that is why I think we should go looking for this beast," declared Suzumiya Haruhi, the class odd-ball, as she announced her plan to her group of friends. Shinichi was eavesdropping as he sat at his desk. Their group called the SOS Brigade was considered an odd club but they still had fun. The leader was Suzumiya Haruhi and the members comprised of Asahina Mikuru, a petite and busty girl with long and orange hair. She was pretty timid. Then there was Koizumi Itsuki who was a mysterious bishonen. The only other male was a plain guy called Kyon. And finally there was the quiet and introverted bookworm called Nagato Yuki.

The day Shinichi first arrived in class, Haruhi had come up to him and fired off questions about why he was starting as a first year when he was 18 and should be in his final year of high school. He really didn't want to go into details with the girl. He didn't want his classmates to get involved, but the girl kept asking. Fortunately, Yuji was able to defuse the situation. Also, Haruhi had a pretty limited attention span and would go after the next weird thing that came by. The recent mysterious wild beast attacks had garnered her interest.

This was bad. He would need to speak with his cousin about this.

* * *

Shinichi was made a member of the Student Council. The membership was as followed:

President: Milly Ashford

Vice President(s): Nekozawa Hana and Fudo Yūji

Secretary: Masami Michiru

Treasurer: Yukinojou Chiaki

Disciplinary Committee Head: Kuso Shogo

Daichi, Yokoshima, Yuki, and Misato didn't exactly have any position in the student council. Milly just liked having them around because she liked them. They were the people who could help Milly with ideas for some of her schemes to make school life interesting for the students. Officially, the they were Milly's 'Creative Advisors'.

And Shinichi's role was that he would be the Vice-Presidents' secretary while Michiru was Milly's secretary. Shinichi proved that he could type reports fast which earned him the position.

"So, some of my classmates were talking about hunting the 'wild animal' responsible for the attacks in the city," Shinichi began as he sat with the Student Council at lunch. This was their lunch meeting, which meant they would eat lunch in the Student Council room. "I'm a bit concerned."

"You should be concerned," Daichi nodded as he strummed his guitar. "The one thing about wild animals is that they're unpredictable. As for this one, it can't be hungry, or else it would've eaten its victims. Instead it just mauls them... It could be scouting this city for a possible ground for territory. Or it could be checking out civilians and looking for easy prey. Like I said, unpredictable..."

Shinichi considered Daichi's words. It was a possibility. However, Shinichi had another theory. The problem was he could only speak to this with Yūji.

"We need to put more emphasis on the students' safety," said Shogo.

"Good point," Yokoshima nodded, "I'm scared out of my mind to go home on my own..."

"It's true, he makes me walk with him to the train," Daichi nodded. "Don't worry, Yokoshima, it won't eat you with all the junk food you consume. I bet your bones are made of candy canes by now."

"Only during Christmas," Yokoshima beamed. Daichi could only palm his face at that. Sometimes Yokoshima could be a real idiot.

"**But we really should consider keeping students safe**," Chiaki signed. **"If this thing hunts at night, then everyone should be dismissed early; before sunset."**

"This whole thing is really scary..." Michiru trembled.

"I don't blame you," Hana agreed, "Even I'm a little disturbed by this."

Misato noted how quiet Yūji was in his seat. "Hey, why so quiet, Yūji-boya?"

"Something about this...doesn't feel right," he admitted.

Yokoshima blinked, "What do you mean?"

"Think about it; a big cat prowling around at night in a city? That doesn't make a damn lick of sense," Yūji explained, "Big cats prefer wide, open, spaces and dense grasslands in order to hide from their prey before ambushing them. A city barely has any grass (excluding trees and parks), and the buildings are so dense and close together that there wouldn't be many places to hide. Plus there's the fact that this thing is just wounding civilians instead of straight-out eating them like Daichi said. Something about this seems _really _wrong."

Milly was quiet as she took everything in. She too knew the urgency of the situation, and was concerned for the students and her friends. "Alright," she said as she rose from her seat. "I'll talk with the Chairmen and let them know of our discussion. Students will be dismissed before sunset and must stay in groups of 2 or more. They are to go straight home until this mess is dealt with by the proper authorities. Everybody clear on that?"

"YES, MADAM PRESIDENT," everyone acknowledged.

* * *

"Yuki-chan, Aniki, I think this is SHADOW's doing," Shinichi told his cousins after the lunch meeting.

"Speak to me, Shin," Yūji listened. "Any ideas what this thing could be?"

Shinichi explained, "At the top of my head, another Mech-Beast and I think I know why it's been committing these random attacks. The victims aren't the real targets, we are."

"...So you thought so too, huh?" Yūji replied.

"It makes sense," Yuki nodded, "There are no connections between the victims. It's possible that this thing is using innocent people as a way to get your attention..."

"And SHADOW knows we won't have any choice but to intervene, lest we want the attacks to escalate. Nobody has died so far. They've come close, but they still survived. I don't know when but if we don't do anything, there'll be bodies in the morgue," said Shinichi.

"Good point," Yūji nodded, "Any ideas? This thing seems to be quick, disappearing as it soon as it attacks somebody, and takes off like a bat outta Hell."

"Come on, I think I can figure something out, but first I need a map of the city," said Shinichi.

* * *

After getting a map, Shinichi explained that even a Mech-Beast's programming could be predictable. He explained that the Mech-Beast would only hunt in areas surrounding its lair. So, he was going to plot the location of each of the attacks to figure out a pattern and find the center point of the attacks. The mysterious predator would be within that area.

"Looks like we're going for a stakeout," Yūji nodded.

"Hey, that sounds interesting," Crow grinned as he arm-hugged Yūji's neck.

"Dammit...Uncle Crow," he choked, "Knock it off...!"

"This little game of yours sounds dangerous," Jack smirked as he approached the group. "I'm in."

"Me too," Crow grinned. "Plus, Aki would murder us if anything happened to her kids."

"Are you both sure about this?" Shinichi asked worriedly.

"Come on, Jack here once kicked a crocodile in the face on a trip to Africa!"

Jack nodded at the memory fondly, "Good times. Suck it, crocodiles."

"This will be a mechanical monstrosity," Shinichi warned. "If things get hairy, get to safety. Aniki and I can handle things."

"...You've forgotten our tales of awesomeness," Crow accused. "WE'RE TEAM SATISFACTION! WE CAN DO ANYTHING!"

"Hmph! Some robot stands no chance against Jack Atlas," Jack boasted.

"Don't say I didn't warn you," said Shinichi as he deactivated his choker, feeling his strength returning. He was going to need it.

* * *

"So, does anybody got any threes?"

"No, Go Fish."

Crow, Jack, Shinichi and Yūji were sitting in a stakeout van together. It was roomy and right now they were playing a game of Go Fish. The walls of the van were lined with screens, giving them a view of the outside. The van was something that Crow got from a friend who owed him a few favors.

Shinichi was paying attention to both the game and the screens. "Nothing," he frowned.

"You know, Shin. You should try that cloning trick you did before," Yūji suggested. This earned the indigo-haired youth looks from his two uncles.

"What cloning trick?" Crow asked curiously.

"It's called '**Harmonics**'," Shinichi began before elaborating, "In combat I can create solid duplicates to aid me in battle."

"Had me on the ropes for a while," Yūji remarked.

"If you did that, you could cover a lot of ground at once," Crow grinned.

"I could, but it's very taxing on the body," said Shinichi.

"How many special abilities do you have?" Jack asked Shinichi curiously.

Shinichi listed, "**Slash Sonic**; which are energy swords, Acceleration, **Burst**; which are energy blasts, **Harmonics** and **Over-Shield**."

"You forgot '**Howling Scream**'," Yūji reminded.

"Howling Scream?" Jack and Crow echoed.

"I put my Slash Sonic together and they vibrate at a certain frequency to release a sound wave that disorients every living thing within range," Shinichi explained.

"Felt like my ears were gonna bleed, not very pleasant," said Yūji.

An hour passed after that and they broke out the snacks. Shinichi was concentrating on the screens. Still...no activity. Just a few stray animals, some homeless guy pushing a cart, but no mysterious wild beast.

"This doesn't make sense. All the activity was centered around here. I'm sure of it," Shinichi mumbled, rubbing his chin. "ARGH!" he rapidly scratching his head in frustration, messing up his hair.

"Hey, Shin," Yūji began.

"WHAT!?" Shinichi snapped and then he apologized. "Sorry...sorry...I'm just wound up."

"...Right, maybe you should go and get some fresh air, outside," Yūji suggested.

"Right...outside...relax..." Shinichi sighed. "OK." He exited the van, leaving his relatives as he took a stroll to catch some fresh air.

"Kid takes life way too seriously," remarked Crow.

"He was kidnapped and turned into a cyborg by an evil organization. That can put a lot of weight on someone's shoulders," said Jack.

"I know, but he's back here, with us! He needs to loosen up!" argued Crow.

"He just needs to get back in the swing of things," Yūji said. "Just give him some time and he'll readapt."

* * *

Shinichi, with his hands in his pockets, strolled around the area to clear his head. Just thinking about SHADOW agitated him. The things they did to him, the things they made him do, he was starting to remember them all in his nightmares. None of them were pleasant and for the past two years he was just one of their tools; a weapon.

Now, he was free of them but a feeling of hatred and a need for revenge still lingered. There was also the need to protect his loved ones who had never once lost hope in finding him. They never gave up on him and even when Yuji knew he was one of SHADOW's soldiers, he still didn't give up on him, which paid off and Shinichi was free of the organization.

Now, the organization was causing trouble for him and his family, and he would not stand for it. He wasn't going to allow them or anyone associated with them to ruin their peace and happiness.

Suddenly, his ears picked up the sound of trouble. Somebody was in danger. He quickly contacted the others, "Guys, I think I found the target! Just follow my signal on the radar!" He dashed off to confront the mystery beast that had been attacking people.

* * *

The SOS Brigade was frozen in fear as the beast stood before them. Haruhi was no longer excited, the normally stoic Nagato was sweating, Mikuru was sobbing, Koizumi was speechless and Kyon was holding his bleeding arm which had a very nasty gash on it. Said beast looked hungry and looked ready to attack them. It made a lunge for them but was knocked out of the air by Shinichi using a flying kick. The beast went tumbling as Shinichi landed on one knee. He turned to look over his shoulder at the SOS Brigade.

"What are you people doing just standing there gawking for!? RUN!" he shouted at them. They didn't need to be told anything else. They fled the area and Shinichi focused his attention back to the beast, which he saw resembled a big cat. It had picked itself up to stand on all fours and looked ready to pounce, but then the stakeout van _burst _into the scene and rammed into the big cat, sending it rolling.

"Did we just hit something?" Crow asked as he hit the brakes.

"Next time, _I_drive," retorted Jack.

Yūji opened the door and exited the van to see that Shinichi was alright. "Hey, how are you doing?"

"Fine," Shinichi said. "By the way, you just hit the thing we were looking for," Shinichi pointed with his thumb. If it was a normal animal, it wouldn't be getting up anytime soon, but it wasn't. When Shinichi had kicked it, he felt like he was kicking metal.

The big cat roared and leaped in the air, the arms extending and the claws folding back as hands popped out from the arms. The back legs extended and turned into human feet. The torso and lower half separated, still connected by winches as the torso was lifted and snapped back onto the lower half, the beast resembling a human body. The bestial face was now the chest as a head popped up from the torso that resembled Kamen Rider Liger's helmet. A pair of yellow eyes glowed brightly in the darkness.

"You've gotta be fucking kidding me," Yūji denied.

Jack gaped, "That's...!"

"Liger!" Crow identified.

"I knew it," Shinichi glared. This had SHADOW written all over it.

**"I am Shadow Liger,"**the black 'Liger' declared.

"How original," Yūji dryly complimented. It was clear that SHADOW had no original naming sense.

**"It should be clear why I am here,"** Shadow Liger said.** "To eliminate Kamen Rider Liger and the traitor of SHADOW: BLACK 13."**

"And attacking those innocent people?!"

**"To lure you out,"** the android answered. **"Based on your battles recorded, you respond to the endangerment of civilians. Logic dictates you would soon act against the harming of civilians in order to deter casualties."**

"Coming after me and my family is one thing, but when you involve innocent civilians who have no idea what's going on, you've crossed a huge fucking line!" Shinichi snapped. "Aniki, show this _bootleg _copy how the original is _way _better!"

"You got that right," Yūji agreed as he swung his belt on, lobbing his key. "It's time to get wild on your stupid ass, fucker!" he declared before inserting the key and turning it.

**"ZERO FORM!"**

It didn't take long for Yūji to assemble his armor, the Rider cracking his knuckles and popping the cracks out of his neck as he got into a stance. "OK, fucker, let's dance!"

Shinichi stood back with Jack and Crow as he analyzed Shadow Liger. They wanted to see what this copy was capable of. They also wanted to see the original Liger scrap it like every other Mech-Beast which had been sent by SHADOW.

Shadow Liger started running ahead, bullets flying from small vulcan machine guns mounted in the corners of its head. Liger Zero raised his shield, firing his beam rifle to counter. The Mech-Beast zigzagged to avoid the beams as it reached behind and chucked a pair of beam daggers that stabbed into Liger Zero's shield, forcing him to release it. Zero tossed his own beam daggers at the copy, Shadow Liger cutting the projectiles with pair of daggers, much like Zero's own weapons as he closed in for a strike. Both Ligers started clashing blades as Liger Zero had drawn his own daggers. The two danced around each other as their blades clashed against each other violently. Shadow Liger got a hit in as he ducked a swipe from Zero's blade as the white Rider was tripped by a sweep kick from his doppelganger. He extended his left arm and Zero rolled away to avoid being peppered by laser fire coming from the vulcan-mounted on Shadow Liger's wrist.

"He has every one of Liger's weapons," Jack frowned.

"No kidding," Crow agreed.

"They copied him. Those sons of bitches copied Aniki's armor," Shinichi stated. It made sense. All those Mech-Beasts that had attacked had been recording Liger in action, sending the data back to HQ so that they could build this dark doppelganger.

"Hehe...you think you're pretty cute," Liger Zero panted, "Tryin' to piggyback off my tech, huh...?"

It wasn't just Liger that SHADOW had copied. Shadow Liger then revealed that he had abilities that Liger didn't have as he created duplicates of himself to surround Liger. Seven of them now stood around, encircling Liger like a pack of wolves preparing for the kill.

"My _Harmonics_!" Shinichi exclaimed.

"Aw, shit," Zero grimaced as he took to the air, his GN Drive providing propulsion to keep him airborne as GN Particles were released.

This gave the Rider a chance to use his beam rifle, blasting at the copies below. The Shadow Ligers scattered as they started running up the walls of nearby buildings, catching up to Liger as they leaped at him for the attack. Zero's GN Sword was swung and locked into position, Liger Zero cutting down two clones with a 1-2 sword strike as he cut through one and spun to increase his momentum before cutting down the second. The other clones fired at him with the beam vulcans as Zero fired back with his rifle, though he did catch some scars on his armor from the peppers of beam fire. He didn't notice a Shadow Liger behind him as it dropped a knee on his back, dropping Liger Zero back to Earth as he landed with a violent and loud thud as dust kicked up as well.

"Aniki!" shouted Shinichi.

"Ow..." Zero groaned as he tried to get up before he felt a foot drop on his back.

**"You're too easy,"**Shadow Liger stated and then he vanished from sight.

"He's gone!" Jack exclaimed.

"No, he isn't!" Shinichi shouted. "Aniki, he's still there! He's using **Cloaking**!" Cloaking was an ability which rendered the user to be undetectable by radar and sight. That meant that Shadow Liger was now invisible, and even more dangerous than before.

"Fucking...wonderful," Liger Zero groaned as he struggled to get back up. He was then pelted with punches to his torso, head, and gut as he was being assaulted by a cloaked Shadow Liger. He was grabbed by the left arm as he was thrown over and dropped on his back, the asphalt breaking beneath him. Luckily, the GN Drive was made of durable material, so it wouldn't break very easily.

"That's it!" Shinichi dashed to intervene. "Henshin!" He split his buckle open and the wireframe appeared over his body to don him in armor. "_**Acceleration!**_" His wings burst from his back and he became a blur, slamming into Shadow Liger and forcing him out of Cloaking. The black Liger snarled and then he too became a blur and moved at the same speed of Shinichi. He too possessed Acceleration!

The two clashed, energy blades against claws, as sparks exploded everywhere. Pieces of the ground flew into the air around them as they knocked each other down only to get back up in an instant. Shinichi slashed at Shadow Liger repeatedly before being knocked backwards by a brutal kick to the chest. Shadow Liger then energized his claws and slashed Shinichi across the chest, fragments of his chest plate going flying to reveal the hidden circuitry underneath. Shinichi gritted his teeth and deactivated his Slash Sonic then took hold of his Beam Sabers on his belt, activating them. He put them together and twirled them around as Shadow Liger fired at him. Shinichi deflected the shots then thrust his staff at the black beast only for him to leap over and flip in the air to slash Shinichi across the eyes, damaging his visor.

"ARGH!" Shinichi shouted as the words '**HELMET MALFUNCTION**' appeared before his eyes on the HUD, flashing repeatedly. His vision was impaired and Shadow Liger rushed forward to drive his claws into Shinichi's stomach. He howled in pain before he was sent flying through the air by Shadow Liger's guns. He went tumbling along the ground in normal speed, his armor heavily damaged as Shadow Liger stood victoriously.

**"BLACK 13, neutralized,"** said Shadow Liger. He walked over to Shinichi as he drew his own sword, resembling Liger Zero's arm-mounted sword as he raised it over his head.** "Mission...accomplished."**

"DON'T BET ON IT!"

Shadow Liger quickly blocked a sword strike from Jack, the tall blond wielding a Nodachi. "As if I'd let you kill these kids, fool!"

"I got'em!" Crow said as he gathered the boys and carried them away. He may have been the shortest of his friends, but Crow was stronger than he looked.

"Good! I'll stall this bastard," Jack nodded. Shadow Liger tried to strike but Jack simply parried the attacks, wielding the two-handed weapon with surprising ease as he swung up and around to strike at Shadow Liger's right. The faux Liger jumped back and fired its vulcan weapon, Jack zigzagging the beam fire as he swung from below and turned the blade, tripping Shadow Liger with the back of his sword as he fell on his back. Jack brought up his sword as he was about to impale Shadow Liger when the imposter rolled away and avoided the tip of the blade.

"JACK!" Crow called as he brought the van around.

"OK!" Jack turned and jumped into the back of the van, taking off like a bat outta Hell as Shadow Liger was left in the dust.

Shadow Liger watched them leave, satisfied that it got the message across. Liger's days were numbered, along with BLACK 13's.

_**つづく**__**  
**_

* * *

**KRB: Sorry if this one's shorter than the others, since it really is. But leaving this one on a cliffy might be better, no? Anyway, stay tuned for more madness.**

Neko-Chaos: "It appears that the boys have met their match."

Neko-Destiny: "And they lost. It's so tragic."

Neko-Bubbles: (nodding rapidly) "Un-Un-Un!"

Neko-Chaos: "But they were able to live to fight another day. Speaking of which, here is the preview for the next chapter."

**PREVIEW OF THE NEXT CHAP...**

"It had my weapons and your abilities," Yūji frowned.

"It was like fighting you and me at the same time," Shinichi agreed.

"How the hell are we going to stop something like that?"

"Here, use this," Yūsei said as he handed his son a blue CAS Card.

"LET'S GET WILD!"

**JAGER FORM!**


	10. The Hunter Pounces

**Tail 10: The Hunter Pounces**

"You know, I think this should be considered a record," said Shinichi.

"A record for what?" Yūji asked.

"How fast we ended up back in the hospital since the last time," said Shinichi. Yūji and Shinichi were both sitting up in separate beds with bandages to cover their injuries. Jack and Crow had them immediately brought here and they were both put into robes and had themselves bandaged up.

"I just hope I don't make a habit out of it," said Yūji. They managed to get a room for two, that way they wouldn't be separated. "But that Shadow Liger, he was something else."

"Your weapons and my abilities," Shinichi recalled, trembling.

"What a combo," Yūji sighed. "But look on the bright side."

"There's a bright side to getting beat up?" Shinichi asked with a cocked eyebrow.

"Think about it," Yūji grinned. "He may have my weapons and your powers, but he doesn't have my tech."

It took a second for Shinichi to think about his cousin's before he realized. "GN Drive!"

"Exactly. My tech isn't something you can copy so easily," Yūji grinned.

"And they only copied what they could see," Shinichi realized. Now he knew why SHADOW wanted the belt so badly. It was for the GN Drive. "So, how does this help us beat Shadow Liger? You know he's going to keep on attacking people as long as he's on the loose."

"Never said I have all the answers. Just need a little time to think. I remember..."

Shinichi asked, "What?"

Yūji answered, "There were other armors I designed when I was a kid. They all had different functions and specific conditions."

"You mean, alternate armor to adjust to specific situations?" Shinichi asked. Yūji nodded. "Well, I think I can help you too. Shadow Liger uses my abilities so I'll teach you how to counter them."

"Sounds good," he nodded. "Just gotta get out of this damn bed."

"We should just rest and take the time to strategize. We know the enemy, now we just need a plan to take him down," said Shinichi with eyes narrowed. "You know, that transforming ability Shadow Liger had was kinda cool."

"That proves this thing isn't human," Yūji added. "It's gotta be something mechanical... Like an android or robot, or something like that. Only machines can talk with a voice like that."

Shinichi murmured, "I used to talk like that." He looked downcast at the memories he had.

"I mean the way he sounded. Don't you remember those movies we used to watch with the robots sounding all electronic and stuff?" Yūji asked. When they were kids, they used to watch a lot of science fiction movies which had robots in them.

"I knew Shadow Liger was an android the moment I saw him," said Shinichi.

"That also means we can do things _he _can't," he grinned.

"Like get our asses kicked?" deadpanned Shinichi sarcastically.

"Very funny..."

"Again?!"

Yūji flinched when he saw his friends at the door, falling as they surrounded the cousins. "Hey guys..."

"I don't get it," Milly sighed, "What was it this time?"

"We...got jumped," Shinichi lied.

"At least we didn't break anything this time," Yūji chuckled nervously.

"Wow, you two must be gluttons for punishment," Daichi snickered.

'_You have no idea_,' thought Shinichi.

"Well, just get better, OK?" Michiru beamed.

Hana kept her distance from the group, watching the two cousins. She knew they were hiding something, but kept quiet and decided to wait until they confessed themselves. She didn't like being kept in the dark, but she didn't want to push anyone away by making any sort of accusations. She was patient, and she would wait until Yūji had the courage to open up to her or the others.

* * *

After the Student Council left...

"You know, I'm really starting to hate lying to them," said Yūji regretfully.

"There's not really much choice, Aniki. The less they know the better," said Shinichi. "Sometimes protecting the people you care about means keeping them in the dark."

"Is that why you haven't told Shiori-mama you've been having random memory flashes?" Yūji questioned.

"I don't want her and Tou-chan to get worried," Shinichi said. "As far as they know, they think I've forgotten about everything SHADOW did to me."

"But you haven't, have you?"

"No...I still want them to pay," Shinichi scowled. "And if that means tearing every single one of them to pieces then so be it."

"We're gonna do it," Yūji promised. "We'll make those fuckers pay for messing with us. That's a promise."

"Yeah, but for now we need to focus on beating Shadow Liger," said Shinichi.

* * *

Yūsei was in his lab analyzing the data that the Liger System was able to record from its previous use. While it saddened him that his son and nephew were injured, they had provided valuable combat that could be used to hopefully best this new opponent.

"Looks like it's that time," said Yūsei as he took out a card from his pocket. It was was blue, with cyan circuit lines running along the surface and a cyan "J" in the center of the card. "Let's hope this helps..."

He had seen the data recorded from Liger's helmet and saw what Shadow Liger can do. The android possessed Liger's weapons and could use BLACK 13's techniques; a powerful combination indeed and could prove deadly against anyone who isn't careful. He was thankful that Jack and Crow were there as they had kept his son and nephew from dying. The best thing to do now was to prepare for when the next time Shadow Liger would strike again.

* * *

"I'm so glad to be out of there," Shinichi stretched happily as he exited the hospital with Yūji. Their injuries weren't so bad. They would need to wear their bandages for a bit longer, but they weren't suffering from anything life-threatening.

"Let's just hope we don't have to go back anytime soon," Yūji remarked, earning a glare from Shinichi.

"You just had to jinx it, didn't you?" Shinichi deadpanned.

"Come on, let me buy you some lunch. I bet you're tired of hospital food," offered Yūji.

"If you're buying, sure," Shinichi smiled.

"And I know just the place," Yūji grinned.

* * *

The place Yūji recommended for them to eat was a popular café. It was popular for mainly three reasons: the good food, the awesome service, and the cute waitresses dressed as maids in short skirts. When Shinichi was brought, his eyes sparkled and he gave Yūji a hug before they both entered to take their seats.

A cute waitress came to their table and gasped as Shinichi saw her. "Asahina-san?" It was his classmate, Asahina, a petite and cute girl who was ranked as one of the Top Ten most beautiful girls in school.

"Ah, Banabara-san," Mikuru blushed. She never expected to see him here but she quickly composed herself. "I mean…" She bowed, "Okaeri nasai, Goshujin-sama!" Shinichi gave her the once over. The maid outfit really showed off her figure. She handed them their menus and excused herself for a moment, promising to return to take their orders later.

"One of your classmates? She's cute," Yūji grinned.

"She was also part of the group we saved from Shadow Liger," Shinichi reminded. He remembered seeing her looking terrified.

"Did she see you?" Yūji asked.

"It was dark, but I'm not sure if any of them did," said Shinichi.

"Well, at least she's alright, thanks to you," said Yūji. "She really should thank you for your help."

"She's OK, that's good enough for me," Shinichi shrugged. "So, what will you be having? I think I'll have the omu-rice (omelet rice).

"A hamburger steak for me," Yūji said. "And a soda to wash it all down."

"I'll go for the mixed tropical fruit punch," Shinichi selected.

Mikuru came and took their orders. She blushed as she looked at Shinichi. It was a bit embarrassing for one of her classmates to see her at her place of work while she was dressed in uniform. He didn't make too much of a fuss about it.

* * *

Nearby, a truck carrying heavy cement cylinders stopped at a red light. A black blur suddenly ran past and cut the ropes holding the heavy cement cylinders and they went rolling off the truck's bed. They now dangerously rolled down the road.

Screams could be heard from outside the cafe and this caught the attention of the Fudō cousins as they looked out their window to see huge concrete cylinders rolling down the street.

"There's something you don't see everyday," Yūji blinked.

"Come on," said Shinichi as he stood up. He left money on the table and stepped out of the cafe with Yūji. The concrete blocks were a huge problem. A car got wrecked when it ran into one and another one of the concrete blocks was rolling towards a little girl. "No!" Shinichi dashed towards the child and scooped her up into his arms before leaping away from the rolling concrete cylinder.

'_Wish I had a bigass hammer or something_,' Yūji thought. He could've smacked away the concrete cylinders and avoid casualties, but for now he had to make due. Spotting a minivan, he went over and pushed as hard as he could, the van sliding along the street as Yūji pushed with all his might. Stopping in the middle of the street, Yūji held his ground against the side of the van as the cylinders slammed into the opposite side. More cylinders slammed into the van, wrecking the side as Yūji stood his ground against the other side.

The people who had witnessed what both Shinichi and Yūji had done cheered and applauded. Shinichi found the little girl's mother and handed her over as the mother thanked him.

* * *

"I'm so sorry!" the driver of the truck carrying the concrete blocks apologized profusely. He didn't know what had happened but he assumed the ropes holding the concrete cylinders had snapped. Shinichi, however, wasn't so convinced. He checked the ropes and his eyes narrowed suspciously.

"It's alright, nobody got hurt," Yūji said to the driver.

"Man…I'm gonna lose my job for sure," the driver groaned.

"Maybe not," said Shinichi after he finished his inspection.

"What is it, Shin?" Yūji asked his cousin who looked serious.

"This was no accident. The ropes were cut," said Shinichi.

"Bet you I know what caused this," Yūji muttered. This screamed Shadow Liger. It was like he was born to cause trouble.

They heard screaming and they looked up to see a window washer hanging from his window washing unit. One of the ropes was cut and the unit was dangling dangerously on a single rope. "HELP ME! I DON'T WANNA FALL! I HAVE A WIFE AND KIDS!"

Yūji frowned and muttered, "How much you wanna bet our 'Black Cat' is behind this too?"

Shinichi didn't answer and ran towards the building. "Henshin," he called and his entire body was encased in armor. Fortunately, all the attention was on the window washer dangling for his life so they didn't notice him until he ran up the building using Acceleration. As the man lost his grip and fell, Shinichi bounded off the building, grabbed hold of the man, and hovered down with the aid of his wings. The man was still screaming, though, irritating Shinichi's ears. "You're safe now. Can you please stop screaming?" he requested. As people approached, some taking pictures with their phones, Shinichi vanished in a black blur only to return to Yūji's side without his armor.

"You did good there, Shin," Yūji smiled in approval.

"I think this is only the beginning of the trouble we're going to have because of this thing," Shinichi told his cousin. "As long as your doppelganger is on the loose, nobody in this city is safe."

"Yeah, I figured," Yūji admitted. "We better have the police keep an eye out for big, robotic cats."

"No, we need to end this, by tonight," swore Shinichi.

_Shin was right. This fucker was getting a little too happy with himself, and we gotta do something about it now. Shin and I continued walking throughout the city, stopping any of Shadow Liger's little 'pranks'. He was trying to hurt people to get our attention and doing a good job at it. He almost killed several construction workers by cutting the ropes holding steel beams. Those men would've been crushed if Shin and I hadn't been there. I'm starting to notice a pattern though, and Shin has too._

"He's just playing with us, striking when we're nearby," said Shinichi as he and Yūji stopped for some coffee at a local StarBucks. They also snacked on some sandwiches too.

"He must think he's pretty fucking cute," Yūji frowned.

"We're his prey and he's acting like a cat with its prey; playing with us," Shinichi growled." We gotta take the fight to him then; rush'em and beat his ass down," Yūji recommended. "And beat him hard."

"The problem is he's fast, too fast," said Shinichi.

Yūji heard his phone go off as he dug it out of his pocket, answering," Talk to me."

"_Yūji, come over to the S&T Building_," Yūsei requested. "_And bring Shin_."

"Got it," he nodded before hanging up. "Dad wants to see us."

"I wonder what Uncle Yūsei wants with us," said Shinichi as he stood up before grabbing the last sandwich and shoving the whole thing into his mouth before chewing.

* * *

"Glad you could make it," Yūsei greeted.

"So, what's up, Dad?" Yūji asked.

"You said you wanted to show us something. What is it?" Shinichi asked.

"That's right," Yūsei nodded before reaching into his lab coat, pulling out an item that surprised the cousins.

"A new card?" Shinichi asked.

"This should help you boys with your animal problem," Yūsei remarked.

Yūji took the blue card, staring at the J as he was recalling the memories of designing the armor when he was but a child. "It's really finished!"

"And it came from your imagination," Yūsei reminded. "This should even things between you and that copy. Just make sure to use it when you have the chance."

"You got it," the son nodded.

"Now, you boys should head home," advised Yūsei. "Oh, and Shinichi, your mother really wants you home."

"She should've called me for that," said Shinichi and he took out his cell phone. He grimaced. "Oh, my battery ran out of power." No wonder she couldn't call him.

"Better go home and recharge it," advised Yūji.

"I already called your mother and told her you were with me. That should give her some relief," added Yūsei.

"Thanks," said Shinichi. "Aniki, we'll talk later."

"Lemme walk you home," Yūji offered. He didn't want Shinichi to be ambushed on his way home. He knew Shinichi could take care of himself but the kid was still his cousin. They had lost him once and nobody in the family wanted to go through that again.

* * *

Shadow Liger watched them leave. He would attack now but he had his orders. Tomorrow they would be going to school...

...And that was when the _real _fun would begin.

* * *

The following day, Shinichi yawned as he walked past the school gate with his cousins.

"Didn't get enough sleep?" Yuki asked.

"I needed to finish up all the homework assignments I missed," said Shinichi. While that was true, he stayed up to do his homework so he could keep his mind off some things. SHADOW, in particular. It was because of them that he had nightmares and restless nights.

"Is that all?" Yūji asked suspiciously. Shinichi wasn't a liar but he sometimes tried to hide his problems since he didn't want to worry others, which of course caused them to worry about him anyway. "Not worried about Big Cat attacks?"

"Speaking of which, Ashford-kaichou's campaign to protect the student body is working, isn't it?" Shinichi asked. He looked forward to school. It was peaceful, normal (or what passes for normal), and he got to spend the day with his cousins and friends. Nothing could ruin this moment

Suddenly, laser fire peppered the schoolyard, causing explosions that sent students in a panic. A black blur then struck, jumping from spot to spot rapidly and in a flash it attacked several unsuspecting students, sending them to the ground as blood stained the school grounds. The sudden attack caused students to scream in run but they had their backs turned and they became easy prey.

"No...no...NO!" Shinichi shouted as Shadow Liger ceased his assault. However, already a dozen innocent male and female students had fallen prey. Shinichi scanned them. They weren't killed but the shock of the intense pain had caused them to go unconscious. "You can't just attack the students!

"Yuki, Shinichi, get the other students to safety," said Yūji. "I'll deal with this." He shouted at Shadow Liger, "Hey, you big, stupid cat! Come and get me!" He stuck his tongue out and pulled down his eye mockingly. He then ran out of the schoolyard which was vacant as Shadow Liger gave chase. The Student Council helped to pick up the injured students while Milly called for an ambulance. When she saw what Yūji had done, she freaked out.

"Where is he going!?" Milly asked.

"He's leading the monster away," said Shinichi.

"What!?" Milly gasped.

"I don't think we need to worry about Aniki," said Shinichi. "At least, not right now. We need to give these students first aid."

"Ah, right. The First Aid Club should be helping," said Milly as she went off to get medical assistance. "I'll get the nurse too!"

"Are you sure Onii-sama will be alright?" Yuki asked.

"He's got the new card Uncle Yūsei made for him," smiled Shinichi. "He should be fine."

"You mean this card?" Yuki asked as she held up the blue card with cyan circuit lines and a _**J**_on it. Shinichi face-faulted.

"How come you have that!?" Shinichi exclaimed.

"Onii-sama left it on his desk. I was going to give it to him in class," said Yuki. Shinichi snatched it out of her hand. "Shin-chan?"

"I need to get this to Aniki! He needs it!" Shinichi dashed out of school grounds to deliver the new card to Yūji. He had to get to his cousin quickly before he got killed. Shadow Liger had every reason to kill Yūji. Mech-Beasts were not programmed to disobey.

* * *

"OK, fucker! Time to kick your ass," Yūji declared, pointing at Shadow Liger. The two were in an open clearing, with no sign of people so there was no fear of innocent bystanders getting hurt. He reached into his pocket and grimaced, not finding the new card his father had given him. "And I lost it," Yūji grimaced, "Fucking wonderful..."

"**You cannot defeat me,"** Shadow Liger proclaimed. **"I am designed to best you in every aspect."**

"That just makes you predictable," Yūji retorted as he slung his belt on and took out the Zero Card. "Now...Let's get wild!" He slotted the card into the belt.

"**ZERO FORM!"**

Once in armor, Liger Zero dashed at Shadow Liger who moved as well. The two met in the middle and the clash began. Claws VS Claws as they slashed at each other like big wild cats fighting over the same prey. The two Liger-like warriors were giving it their all as sparks flew. Liger Zero performed a sweep kick but Shadow Liger jumped and performed a back flip, landing in his Big Cat mode as he landed on all fours. Growling, Shadow Liger pounced on Liger Zero who bent backwards, landing on his hands, then tossed his lower body up to hit Shadow Liger in the midsection before tossing him over to the ground across from him. Liger Zero returned to his feet and spun around to see Shadow Liger back in his Fighter Mode.

The two ran at each other full speed, both drawing their daggers and swinging wildly as sparks exploded everywhere. Shadow Liger drew its Beam Daggers and chucked them at Liger Zero as he blocked the projectiles with his shield before throwing it away. Shadow Liger activated it's Beam Vulcan and fired as Liger zero blocked with his smaller shield before retaliating with his Beam Rifle. The two Ligers peppered each other with beam fire before drawing the Blades, the two running at each other as the large blades clashed against each other. Liger Zero swing around for backhand swing which was ducked by Shadow Liger as he jumped up for a headbutt that landed in Liger's face as he flew back, the GN Drive's propulsion allowing him to hover so he didn't hit anything, the green particles being emitted from the GN Drive. SHADOW wanted it for their own purposes, but they couldn't replicate the tech, so they made due. Shadow Liger then fed Zero an uppercut that sent him sprawling, the white Rider trying to get up as his counterpart stood over him.

"**No more games. This is where you die, Kamen Rider Liger**," said Shadow Liger as he used Harmonics to surrounded Liger Zero. They then took turns attacking him, slashing at him with his claws. They would zip by him but still remain in formation, switching places as they attacked him mercilessly. Once they stopped, Liger Zero fell to his knees and they were aiming their own beam rifles at him. How was he supposed to get out of this one? If he jumped, that'll leave him open to attack and...

**CRASH!**

A car came crashing down on several Shadow Liger clones, flattening them, and Liger Zero blinked.

"**BLACK 13!" **snarled Shadow Liger as he spotted Shinichi in the distance. He'd just thrown the car to assist Liger Zero.

"ANIKI!" Shinichi shouted as he held up the J-Card. "USE THIS!" He tossed it and it spun while flying through the air before Liger Zero caught it.

"Alright, this is what I'm talking about!" grinned Liger Zero as he ejected his Z-Card and inserted the J-Card in its place before turning the key.

"**JAGER FORM!**"

Blue shards gathered onto Liger. The shoulder armor covered from the shoulders to the elbows. A part of both pieces stuck up behind Liger like shark fins. Another white blade was positioned about mid-bicep on each arm. Liger had similar armor on his hips. The forearms' armor were a narrow oval shape, like two thin shields on each arm. Again, he had similar armor on his legs, this time on the shins. The armor around all four limbs covered his arms and legs completely in black metal. His torso was covered in a large, black, streamlined chest piece. On his back, the armor was also black and box-like except for two large, blue, vent-like boosters, connected to the GN Drive via black tube-like extensions. The open parts of the boosters showed the black insides of the structures. The helmet was now was now covered with blue armor on the sides of the white lion-themed face plate along with long, blue, ear-like extensions. The padding on his arms and legs were blue as well.

Shinichi's were wide in awe as he saw his cousin's new form. As for Shadow Liger, he seemed confused as this was not recorded in his databanks. Liger Jäger flexed his fingers and in the blink of an eye he was right in front of Shadow Liger. A moment later, Shadow Liger went reeling with sparks flying off his chest plate. Snarling, Shadow Liger slashed at Liger Jäger with his claws but Liger Jäger countered with his own claws, parrying away Shadow Liger's claws before slashing Shadow Liger across the chest, twice. Shadow Liger then activated Acceleration but now Liger Jäger had the ability to reach the same speed. Black and blue blurs smashed into each other repeatedly. Jäger was moving twice as fast as Zero could move, and this gave Yūji a chance to even the odds in his favor against the imposter. Shinichi's eyes were focused on the battle as he could see them. What he saw was both Ligers slashing at each other furiously with their claws as sparks exploded all over the place. Shinichi's fists were clenched tight.

"Gambatte, Aniki," Shinichi whispered.

Shadow Liger was knocked out of his Acceleration and sent tumbling. Damage was evident on his armor as Liger Jäger stood with his arm out. Shadow Liger activated Harmonics and created clones that he sent to attack Liger Jäger and he responded in kind.

"**FULL CHARGE!"**

Liger Jäger bent his knees and he rushed the Shadow Liger clones. They were all hit and exploded as they were struck by Liger Jäger's glowing claws. Shadow Liger fired at Liger Jäger with his beam cannons but Liger Jäger dodged by zigzagging along the ground, leaving a trail of after-images. Once in range, Liger Jäger jumped and landed a roundhouse kick across Shadow Liger's face. The force of the kick caused sparks to fly as Shadow Liger started to twitch and jerk uncontrollably.

"**Unbelievable…" **Shadow Liger uttered as he started to malfunction as sparks sprayed out of his joints.

"Let's finish this!" Jäger declared as he dashed to Shadow Liger, his claws glowing gold. Shadow Liger tried to draw his GN Sword and swing, only for Jäger to tear cleanly through both the sword AND Shadow Liger's torso. The blue Rider flew past as the black copy fell to pieces, electricity crackling and sparks flying before the mass of parts finally exploded. Jäger touched down and fell to a single knee, breathing heavily as he tried to recover from the experience. "What a rush," Yūji marveled as he turned the key, the blue card ejecting and his armor disappearing as he caught the card. Shinichi jogged over to him and held his hand out to his exhausted cousin.

"Pretty good for its first field test, huh?" Shinichi questioned as Yūji tightly grasped his hand. Shinichi pulled Yūji up to his feet but he stumbled. "Woah, easy there," said Shinichi as he supported his cousin.

"Dude...I feel so heavy," Yūji whined. "High-speed battle..._not_the best idea..."

"Really?" Shinichi wondered. "I don't really have a problem with it," he grinned cheekily. Yūji glared and pinches his cousin's cheeks. "Itai! Itai! Itai!"

"Yeah...take that," Yūji growled. "No problem, _my ass_! Easy for you to say when you get remodelled into a super fighter!" Yūji released his cousin's cheeks.

Shinichi frowned as he rubbed his cheeks, "It's not like I _asked _for this body, you know."

"I know," he sighed. "Just glad that fucker's finally X-ed...!"

"Come on, let's go home," said Shinichi. "After what happened, I don't feel like going back to school."

"You go ahead. Yuki's still at school and I need to check on the others," Yūji said. "Odds are they realize I've been gone for too long, so they might think something's wrong. I'm sure you can get home on your own this time."

"Yeah...on second thought..." Shinichi grimaced. If he went home his mother would be waiting. She would demand why he wasn't at school. "I better head to school too..."

* * *

Yūji and Shinichi returned to school together. However, since they couldn't explain the reason why they had left school grounds without permission, they had to serve detention as punishment. For detention, they were assigned cleaning duty and were ordered to mop the gym's floor.

"You know, this has to be so unfair," scowled Shinichi as he mopped the floor with Yūji. "We took out the monster that attacked the students."

"Well, we couldn't exactly tell them the truth, right?" Yūji asked, referring to their teachers. "Just grin and bear it, Shin. Grin and bear it. Besides, this gives me a chance to relax after almost getting my ass handed to me again from that fucking copy. Again, glad he's gone."

Shinichi dipped the mop into the bucket and cocked an eyebrow, "_This_is relaxing?"

"Remember that one time when I got trouble back in middle school and I had to do cleaning duty? Broke the mop and practiced with it like a bo staff," he snickered. "Got in trouble for that too!"

Shinichi laughed. He remembered that time too.

"Hello, boys. How's cleaning duty?" asked Milly as she entered the gym with the rest of the Student Council.

"Well, we have to finish cleaning the entire floor before we can leave," Shinichi sighed. "This is going to take a while."

"Or will it?" Milly asked as each of the Student Council members held up a bucket of soapy water and a mop.

"Milly," Yūji smiled. "Isn't this against the rules or something? You can't interfere with another student's detention even if you're the Student Council Prez."

"I'm not breaking any rules. Just helping a friend," Milly smiled as she picked up her own mop and bucket. "Come on, everybody! Let's make this place shine!"

"Time out, time out," Yūji called, gaining the attention of his friends. "I got something to say, and I can't stay quiet."

"Aniki," Shinichi blinked, wondering if Yūji really will confess.

"What's up?" Yokoshima asked.

"I have something to confess about," Yūji sighed.

"You're gay," Daichi interjected with a grin.

"Oh, fuck you, dude!" Yūji roared. "NO!" He calmed down before resuming, "Remember that guy in the white armor?"

"Aniki, what are you doing?" Shinichi asked seriously.

"It's time to come clean, Shin," said Yūji. Shinichi frowned as he crossed his arms.

"They don't need to know," Shinichi retorted.

"Yeah, they do. They're my friends, and I can't keep lying," Yūji replied.

"Well, if that's what you want to do. But can you trust them?" Shinichi asked.

"They're my friends. That's all that matters to me," Yūji replied. Shinichi sighed.

"Fine, since this is your decision. I just hope you seriously know what you're doing."

The Student Council looked back and forth at the exchange and Michiru spoke up, confused, "Ano...what are you two talking about?"

"You were mentioning that dude in white," said Yokoshima. "What about him?"

"You should answer, now," Hana frowned as she crossed her arms. "I don't appreciate you hiding anything from us, Yūji; hiding from _**me**_. And don't think I haven't noticed your suspicious actions as of late."

"Sharp as always," Yūji laughed nervously. Taking a breath, he dropped his backpack and opened it, pulling out the belt and connecting it around his waist. "Look familiar?"

"Hey, cool belt," Yokoshima grinned. Shinichi crossed his arms and frowned in disapproval, but this was Yūji's decision after all.

"Hey, that's the belt that guy wears," Shogo identified.

"Now, watch this," Yūji smiled as he took out the Z-Card. He slid the card into the belt and turned the key.

"**ZERO FORM!"**

The Student Council gasped as Yūji was enveloped in light and covered by his armor, Liger Zero standing before them in Yūji's place as they realized the two were one and the same.

"And this is where the phrase 'Ta-da' would go," Liger Zero joked, doing a small jazz-hands routine.

As the Student Council surrounded Liger Zero, bombarding him with questions, Shinichi stood to the side. He stared at his hand with a neutral look. Under the skin were wiring and circuitry. His muscles were synthetic, his bones were metal-plated, and he had mechanical organs instead of organic ones. He gazed at the Student Council's acceptance then shook his head. He couldn't tell them. He couldn't risk the possible rejection. He wasn't like his cousin. All he could do now was hide what he really was and enjoy a normal school life without them knowing the truth about him.  
It was for the best.

"TIME OUT!" Yūji demanded, everyone freezing as they backed away to give him some space as he removed the helmet. "OK, you guys got questions, but I wanna say I'm sorry from keeping this from you. You gotta understand I kept my mouth shut about this so that you guys would be safe."

"Safe from what?" Yokoshima asked.

"SHADOW," Shinichi answered.

"Who are they?" Shogo asked.

"The guys that sent that damn cat here," Yūji answered. "They also sent those bat and scorpion dudes that attacked the Halloween party. They were looking for me, basically..."

"Basically they're targeting Aniki because he has a piece of technology they want," Shinichi added.

"So you made that stuff?" Daichi asked.

"Dad made it," Yūji corrected, "I _designed _it."

"And SHADOW wants to kill Aniki for it," Shinichi finished.

"That's not fair!" Michiru whined. "Yūji-kun made it, so it's his!"

"SHADOW doesn't play fair, unfortunately," Shinichi replied, shrugging. "If you have something they want, they'll kill you for it. If you're someone that can benefit them, they'll kidnap you."

"This SHADOW...they're the reason you went missing, weren't they?" Hana asked Shinichi.

"...I don't wanna talk about it," he denied as he tried to look away.

"Wait! That means Yuki knew all along!" Misato accused.

"Of course I know," she confessed. "I am Onii-sama's sister, so of course I would know everything about him."

"Now that you all know, what will you do with this information? You can just forget you know and just move on with your normal lives. This really isn't a fight you should get involved in. You're just normal kids. You shouldn't have to risk your lives with this knowledge," Shinichi told them.

"What kind of cheesy-ass movie did you watch?" Daichi retorted, "Talking like that..."

"Because I know!" Shinichi snapped. "They kept me prisoner for two years! Two fucking years! I know what they're about! I know what they do to people who know too much! Everyday for those two years I had to watch people get tortured and even killed!" His fists were clenched in anger as he trembled. "Every...single...day!" Yokoshima was the only one who tried to back away slowly before he was pulled back by Chiaki.

"Well, we could always play dumb," Shogo suggested. "Yokoshima's an expert at that."

"Yeah, I-" Yokoshima froze, "Wait, what?"

"Regardless of what happens, it's my duty as Student Council President to stand by my underlings and ensure their safety," Milly declared. "And that goes double for one of my cute second-in-command officers!"

"Milly...you're embarrassing me," Yūji blushed. It looked weird since he still had the rest of his armor on.  
Shinichi palmed his face.

"Excuse me, but if you were SHADOW's prisoner, how did you get out?" Hana asked Shinichi suspiciously.

Shinichi blinked then looked at Yūji. He smiled, "Aniki rescued me."

"Basically," Yūji agreed.

"In any case," Milly spoke up, "The fact is you still kept this secret from us, Yūji. So you need to be punished!"

Yūji blinked, "Wait...what?"

"Misato, you decide how we should punish Yūji for keeping secrets," Milly allowed.

Misato grinned maniacally while Yūji paled. He was so not looking forward to her idea of a good punishment. Meanwhile, Hana just stared at Shinichi. He knew more than he was letting on. He was a captive of SHADOW for two years. They must've done something to him. However, he just wasn't telling them...

_OK, while I should accept the consequences of my actions (such as lying to my friends), I am so not looking forward to whatever consequences Misato may be cooking in that noggin of hers. That look in her eyes... Anyway, I finally came out and told my friends my secret (I am not gay!). Just hope I can keep SHADOW away from them. I can only bet that SHADOW will only throw something harder my way, so I need to be ready._

**_つづく_**

* * *

**KRB: And we intro JAGER! Yay! Decided to give the Ion Boosters connectors to the GN Drive to show where it gets the power from. The GN Particles are directed into valves and enhanced by the Ion Boosters, giving them twice the normal output for increased speed. God bless Mech anime for such ideas!**


	11. Wonders of Winter

**Tail 11: Wonders of Winter**

It was December 15th and already winter as Neo Domino City was covered by a fine sheet of snow. Small children played, dressed in thick winter coats, throwing snowballs at each other or building snowmen. Even older kids enjoyed the snow, even if a few of them disliked the cold. December 15th also meant that it was 10 days to Christmas and already decorations were being hung in the shopping districts. The big Christmas tree in the middle of the shopping district made it pretty obvious that everyone was starting to get in the festive season.

That also included the Student Council of Neo Domino High.

It was after school but Milly Ashford had summoned the entire Student Body for something and the students really couldn't deny whatever she wanted. The student body was assembled in the School Auditorium as Milly stood behind the pedestal with a microphone. Seated behind her were the members of the Student Council, which now included Shinichi as the Vice Presidents' secretary.

"Everyone, thank you for coming. I am well aware that this is after school, but as you can see we have a lot of snow covering the school grounds," she spoke. "Therefore, today, we will have a special event!"

Yuki and Misato stood up and grabbed two ends of banner and spread it out to display the words: "**NEO DOMINO HIGH BOYS VS GIRLS SNOWBALL BATTLE!**" This garnered a lot of attention from the students who began to murmur among themselves.

"Now, each of you will receive a cap; blue for boys and red for girls," Milly explained. Yokoshima and Daichi both started distributing caps. They were colored to Milly's specifications. "The objective is to knock off your opponents' cap with a snowball and collect as many as you can. I'm sure it will be difficult to collect that many caps which is why we have baskets for you all to pour in your stash here in the auditorium."

"I'm guessing she does this often," Shinichi whispered to Yūji.

"She's been doing stuff like this since she came into office," Yūji whispered back. "It keeps things interesting."

"This explains why she's so popular and gets elected again," said Shinichi.

Milly continued, "Stashed away in different locations on campus are various weapons that you can use to increase your chances are winning. You will find marked boxes with what you need inside and simply instructions."

Yokoshima blinked, "Weapons?"

Shogo answered, "I designed them."

"Now, as for the prize, if the girls win all the boys of the Student Council will be serving them for an entire month. The same goes for the boys as they will have the service of the girls of the student council," declared Milly. Yokoshima blushed with a goofy grin. "But no pervy stuff! No pervy stuff!" she warned. Milly had power, and also a reputation. Despite her airheaded and impulsive nature, she actually respected the rules. "Now then, let's the games begin!"

With that said, all the students ran out of the auditorium and out into the snow.

"Come on, Shin!" Yūji prompted.

"Hai, Aniki!" Shinichi agreed as he followed his cousin. Milly laughed as she joined the rest of the girls. She was not going to be excluded. By default, she was the leader of the girls' side. As for the leader of the boys' side, Yūji had been selected.

* * *

It was an insane battlefield of flying snowballs as the boys and girls threw the compacted, snowy projectiles at each other, and this was just five minutes into the game. Caps fell off and were collected as students were being taken out of the game. Yokoshima was at the boys' side counting the red aps they had found.

Shinichi, of course, was having fun as well. He'd taken cover behind a tree and had made several snowballs. He spotted some of the girls from his class and apologized under his breath before he pelted them with snowballs. They cried out as their caps were knocked off. Darting forward, Shinichi scooped up the hats.

"Are you girls OK?" he asked and they nodded. "You should head to the gym. That's where you gotta go when you're out." He then went to put the caps with the rest of their collection, avoiding snowballs.

Shogo was at the boys' side with the map spread out. Both sides had a map which indicated the locations where the weapons were placed. The weapons were powerful tools that could really turn the tide for either side.

"So, how many of our guys are out?" asked Daichi.

"30," Shogo reported as he'd gone to the gym to check and saw 30 boys waiting.

"And the girls?"

"29, and counting," Shogo answered. "And that was five minutes ago."

"Hey, here are some more caps," said Shinichi as he carried the caps in his arms. "So, have any of you seen Aniki?"

"Wasn't he with you?" Daichi asked.

"No, I think I lost him," said Shinichi.

"Put those caps with Yokoshima," said Shogo. Shinichi nodded and went to add his to the pile.

"That was like six caps, right?" Daichi asked.

"Yup," nodded Shogo.

* * *

Misato grinned as she found a rectangular box marked with a question mark (?). She opened it and her eyes sparkled, "Ooh, come to Mama." It looked like a bazooka, but it was designed to fire snowballs rapidly. She heard the click of a gun behind her and grimaced, "Dammit..." She raised her hands and slowly turned to see Yūji with a pair of snowball handguns. "Guess I lose, huh?"

"Never said I was gonna shoot," Yūji retorted.

This confused Misato and questioned, "Then what are you gonna do?"

"How about a team-up?"

Misato blinked and asked, "That's not against the rules?"

Yūji grinned, "Never mentioned anything about boys and girls teaming up." Misato was catching on as she too grinned, the two Student Council members having the same thoughts.

* * *

Boys were sprawled all over the snow-covered floor, with Hana standing in the middle of the mess, and their caps removed.

"You're amazing, Hana-chan!" Michiru praised as she carried the caps.

"Yeah, you always know how to get the drop on people, Hana!"

Michiru jumped and Hana was on guard as they saw Misato and Yūji together. "It's you two," she blinked.

"Miss us?" Misato grinned.

"I surrender!" Michiru cried.

"I'm not gonna shoot you, Michiru," Yūji chuckled.

"We decided to team up," Misato said, "Want in?"

"Yeah!" Michiru accepted as she hugged Yūji.

Hana asked suspiciously,"Isn't that against the rules?"

"Never mentioned it in the rules," Misato grinned.

* * *

At the bottom of a hill, Shinichi had just unearthed a catapult and loaded a giant snowball into it. He took hold of the lever and pulled, "Fire!" The catapult swung and sent the giant snowball flying. "Yes! I am the king!" he declared proudly.

"Hey! I wanna help!" said Yokoshima as he ran over but he slipped and fell down the hill. As he rolled down, snow began to cover his body until he became a big snowball. The snowball continued to slide down before stopping near Shinichi.

"Hey, where did this big fella come from?" Shinichi asked. He shrugged, "Oh well." He loaded the giant snowball into the catapult and then sent it flying. As it went soaring through the sky, he blinked and wondered out loud, "Was that snowball screaming?"

"Caught a picture," Daichi snickered as he showed Shinichi a picture of Yokoshima being stuck in the snow with his legs sticking out. Shinichi's eyes widened as he grimaced.

"Is he gonna be mad at me?" Shinichi asked.

"Meh, he'll be fine," Daichi dismissed. "This actually isn't that bad considering the concussions he gets playing football."

"Oh, yeah," Shinichi remarked.

* * *

Scores of boys were taken out as Misato shot giant snowballs at them with her Snow Bazooka. Hana had planted traps as suckers fell right into them. Yūji gunned down more with his Snow Guns while Michiru collected hats from fallen enemies.

"This is fucking hilarious!" Misato laughed maniacally. "These guys are so easy!"

"And of course we have whatever training Hana had to thank," Yūji added. Hana said nothing as she simply blushed. Yūji always complimented her when he felt it mattered; he always had something good to say.

"This makes no sense!" a random boy cried, "Why have you sided with the girls?!" He received his answer when Yūji bombarded the guy with snowballs.

"Because I _can_, fucker! Hahaha," Yūji laughed as he continued his "manslaughter."

Michiru laughed and giggled as she performed flips and leaps, dodging snowballs. She stuck her tongue out at them, "Nyah! Nyah!" She took cover behind a tree and grinned at the snowballs piled up there. "Score." She grabbed a couple and got out from her cover to throw them, knocking the caps off two boys. "Yes!" She went and grabbed their caps before apologizing, "Sorry, boys~!"

Milly herself was having fun. She had found one of the hidden weapons. It was a backpack that could make snowballs once it was loaded with snow and connected to a nozzle via a rubber hose. It was called the 'Snow-Thrower'. Pulling the trigger would allow the weapon to release snowballs in quick succession and she was laughing, "Prepare yourself for snowy death! Ohohohohohohoho!" She checked the gauge on the nozzle. "Hm, I'm almost empty. I better reload." She left to reload, leaving the boys sprawled on the snow-covered ground. Nearby girls scrambled over to grab the fallen caps.

The game had continued, with the number of 'casualties' rising by the second. The 'dead' players were all taken to the gymnasium. It was a long day and the fallen were many, with the Student Council remaining. Some complained that it was all a plot by the Council to come out on top, but they naysayers were simply silenced with more snowballs which filled their mouths. Yokoshima was also one of the players out of the game and sitting in the gym wrapped in a warm blanket after being stuck in the snow for a while. Many were outraged that Yūji had formed an alliance with the girls, while some found it kinda obvious. They were his "harem", after all.

Shinichi was also still in the game. Using ambush tactics, and the catapult, he took out many of his fellow competitors, from both sides. He didn't discriminate. What had originally been a Boys VS Girls competition had turned into a Battle Royale.

It was at the end where both team leaders (Milly and Yūji) had held the grand flag together in triumph, with the Student Council cheering. Meanwhile, the losers were dissatisfied by the result, the point was that Milly wanted everyone to enjoy themselves with a little friendly competition.

"You know, we should have a 'Capture the Flag' event next time," said Milly.

"Aw, hell yeah! And we can get a tank!" Yokoshima suggested.

Daichi could only sigh and asked, "Where the hell are we gonna get a tank? And what would we do with it?!"

"Pick up chicks, duh," Yokoshima deadpanned. "And besides, the more you hook up then the better it gets! Like Voltron!"

"I think if we had Voltron it'd be better. Chicks dig giant robots," said Shinichi.

"_Everyone_digs giant robots," Yūji agreed.

Michiru agreed with a cheer of, "GIANT ROBOTS!"

Chiaki smiled and signed, **"What should we do now?"**

"I think we should get something to eat," Milly suggested. "We definitely deserve it."

"I want to eat...with Onii-sama," Yuki blushed.

"I...should get home and study," Hana hesitated. She turned and was about to leave when she felt a tug on her hand, looking back to see Yūji smiling at her, like always.

"Come on, come and have fun with us," he smiled, "I'll even buy you those roasted chestnuts you love so much." Hana could only blush as she tried to keep her head low to get her hair to shield her from Yūji's gaze, still nodding as she couldn't refuse his offer.

"Ooh, buy me a banana split, Yuji-kun!" Michiru said.

"You're wish is my command," he smiled as he ruffled her hair playfully.

Misato grinned and muttered, "I could sure go for a _banana split _with you..."

* * *

The Student Council were looking for a place to eat, the cousins hanging back to talk as they watched their friends conversing.

Shinichi said, "The Student Council are great people. Especially Ashford-kaichou. How did you meet her, Aniki?"

Yūji looked to see Milly laughing as he answered, "Milly and I met back when I was a Freshman. I was a little nervous at first, but one day Milly came into my class, said I was cute and told me to enter the Student Council with her."

Shinichi could only stare at his cousin, trying to make sense of his words, and asked, "She asked you to join, just like that?"

"She literally appeared out of nowhere from me," he nodded. "But aside from her...eccentricities, Milly has been really good to me and Yuki. I wouldn't have met the others if it wasn't for her."

"So, how did she end up as the Student Council President?"

"Her grandfather has connections with Shizuru and Natsuki," he answered, "After Milly transferred here, she took an aptitude test for the position. She became Vice-President during her first year. It was after the previous President stepped down because she graduated when Milly took over."

"I also noticed that you and Nekozawa-san get along pretty well, despite your positions on the council," he added.

"Had to do some history research so I went to the school library. Got a little lost before I found a promising source. Hana had her eyes on the book too once we both reached for it. We ended up staring at each other for a couple seconds before laughing. I told her what I was doing and she gave me some recommendations. Got an A thanks to her and Milly made her our second Vice Pres."

"And you both got along with having the same position?"

Yūji shrugged, "We knew how to get things done. She was a little quiet at first, but I always listened to when she talked."

Shinichi then smiled, "And you became friends."

"She can be secretive sometimes, but I don't pry."

"And Masami-san?"

"Michiru...she was a weird one," Yūji admitted as he set his eyes one her.

"Was?"

Yūji then continued with his stories as he explained his circumstances with Michiru, "I was at the market one time and wanted to get bananas. A got a set and then I noticed Michiru staring at me from like 3 feet away. Well, she was staring at the bananas I think. I gave her one and we've been friends ever since. I always visit her when she's practicing in the gym."

Shinichi hearing about his cousin's experiences did intrigue him, helping him learn a little more about them. "And what about the guys?"

Yūji then listed, "Found Daichi playing in the music room alone one time. Chiaki was drawing in the park on time, with birds perched all over him. Had a dodgeball match with Shogo and I helped Yokoshima out of a tree."

Shinichi caught that last comment and blinked, "Wait...a tree? Why was he in a tree?'

"2 Years and I'm still trying to figure that out," Yūji sighed.

"He never told you?"

"Oh, he was trying to get an apple back from a squirrel and got his head stuck in the split of the tree. That's the part I can't figure out."

Such an explanation was unheard of and this only served to twist Shincihi's brain with confusion and discomfort as he tried to figure out how anyone could get stuck in a tree. "...How...huh...what?"

Yūji nodded at his cousin's expression, "Exactly."

"And Kurushina-san?"

Shinichi's next question got Yūji to think as he actually tried to contemplate a good answer. "Misato... She is a puzzle if I ever seen one."

Shinichi questioned, 'A puzzle? You haven't figured her out yet?"

"She's kinda violent, weird, but she's a good person, strong, smart..."

Shinichi grinned and supplied, "Sexy?'

"Ok, yeah," Yūji admitted with a blush, "She's sexy."

"You all make a pretty interesting student council," he smiled.

"We're a hell of a team," Yūji nodded. "Hey, let's go do some Christmas shopping. I gotta do some shopping for the girls, Yuki and Mom. You can look for something for Aunt Shiori and your dad."

Shinichi could only nod, "Yeah, I owe them two Christmases."

Yuji could only grin before quipping, "Maybe you can get a few things for your lady friends while you're at it."

Shinichi chuckled with admittance, "That'd be expensive. Of course I could get a game for Izuma-san and a stuffed toy for Hirasawa-san."

"OK! Shopping time!"

* * *

_**December 20th...**_

"I simply love putting out the kotatsu, don't you?" Milly smiled as she sat at the kotatsu with the rest of the Student Council. Three kotatsu, lined up and put together had been set up to keep the Student Council members warm. The heater was broken so this was the only alternative they had to keep warm.

"It's nice and warm~" purred Michiru as she laid her head against the warm surface of the table. "You could almost fall asleep on it."

"And it's at least comfortable," said Hana.

"So, are we actually having a meeting or just lounging right now?" asked Shinichi as he read a manga while eating potato chips.

"Doesn't sitting at a kotatsu make you feel lazy?" asked Yokoshima. "I could stay here all day..."

Chiaki was sketching a drowsy Yokoshima.

"Hey, I got a deck of cards," said Yūji. "Let's play Old Maid."

"How about we just relax?" questioned Misato as she read a magazine. "Hm, 'Christmas Love Horoscope'," she read.

"What is it?" Yuki asked as she looked over Misato's shoulder.

"It says here by wearing a blue scarf with white snowflakes on it, you'll get lucky with the man of your dreams," said Misato. "It also says here that red, white and green are lucky colors too."

"Lucky, hm?" Yuki asked.

"Yo, Banabara! Grab us some coffee, would ya?" Daichi requested.

"Hai, Takashima-sempai," Shinichi nodded and he took the money before walking out of the Student Council room to get coffee.

* * *

Shinichi returned with a cans of coffee from the vending machine for the Student Council members. The shocking part was that he'd only used enough money for one can.

"The machine kept spitting them out," said Shinichi.

"Was it broken?" asked Michiru.

"Consider it lucky," Milly smiled.

Yuki blinked, "Shinichi, are you wearing anything red, white or green today?"

Shinichi didn't answer. He took a can, popped it open, and gulped it down. No way was he gonna say he was wearing Christmas boxers.

* * *

_**December 21st**_

The Student Council were heading to the ice rink for ice skating. They were dressed warm clothes and winter coats.

"How exciting!" giggled Michiru.

"Your first time ice skating, huh?" Yūji asked Michiru.

"Yup!" beamed Michiru.

* * *

They entered the building and rented their skates. They put them on and then walked awkwardly over to the ice.

"Let's go!" Yokoshima exclaimed as he leapt onto the ice, only to slip and fall onto his face.

***WHAM!***

"Itai..." Yokoshima groaned.

"Is he gonna be OK?" Shinichi asked.

"He's taken worse blows to the head during football practice," said Daichi. "He can just walk it off."

Chiaki grabbed the back of Yokoshima's coat and lifted him up.

"Thanks, Chiaki," grinned Yokoshima. Chiaki nodded and put him back on his feet.

* * *

Milly was gliding gracefully along the ice. Some men wanted to advance toward her before they spotted Yūji approaching her as he and Milly took hands, the men retreating quickly in dismay.

"May I have this dance," he requested.

"You may," Milly giggled as they started skating together. "It's been awhile since we've done anything together like this..."

"Yeah, well, school and all," Yūji admitted.

"School can be so boring sometimes," she pouted.

"And that's why you're around, to spice things up," he added.

"Coming to Japan was definitely a good idea," Milly smiled.

"You opened yourself up to new experiences, met new people, ate new foods," Yūji listed.

"And I met _you_," she muttered.

Yūji thought he heard her say something and blinked, "Hm? Said something?"

"Oh, my, nothing at all! You really need to pay attention, Yūji," she laughed. He then spotted Yuki who glided across the ice like a professional figure skater. She performed a jump then twirled in the air, before landing on one skate and continuing her spin before she slowed down. She then continued to glide, this time on only one skate with her other leg extended backwards. "Wow, Yuki's pretty good!"

"She had to practice so she could compete against Mizore," he chuckled.

"Mizore?"

"Yeah...my half-sister," Yūji clarified.

"Ah~ been keeping secrets from me," Milly playfully glared.

"Nobody ever asked,"" he blushed.

"Is she as cute as Yuki?"

"You could say that."

* * *

Sometime after, Michiru was skating before she ran into Yūji, who gently caught her. "Sorry..."

"No problem," he smiled. "It's your first time on ice, after all. Want help?"

"Sure," she nodded. She was being led by the hands as Yūji pulled her along, skating backwards as she pushed her forward gently.

"There you go," Yūji smiled. "Think of it as sliding on a waxed floor with your socks on." She then jumped forward a little, Yūji catching her quickly as she just smiled and purred blissfully. "Michiru...?"

"I fell," she lied. "You're really good at skating..."

"Had to learn so that my sisters wouldn't get mad at me," he explained, shivering a little at a memory.

"You have other sisters?"

"Four others," Yūji nodded. "They've been out of the country for a while and nobody's ever asked about them. So I never really talked about them."

"Are they nice?" she asked hopefully.

"Oh, yeah, they're just weird," Yūji admitted, "But then again, everyone in the family is weird."

* * *

It was the 23rd of December, and Shinichi was helping with Christmas decorations along with his family. Aki, Yuki, Shiori, and Crow were busy in the kitchen while Jack and Shōtaro were putting up the tree. Shō was giggling as he had entangled himself in trimmings. Shinichi and his brotherly cousin were setting the huge dinner table.

"It's been so long since I've done this," Shinichi marveled. He'd missed out on 2 years of his life, so he had a lot to make up for.

"Best to make the most of things now," Yūji supported as he set the utensils. "Don't worry about all that nonsense and have fun." He then heard the doorbell ring, putting down his stuff, as he volunteered, "I got it!" He made his way to the door and opened it, letting out a "MMMF...!" as he was tackled by a pair of bountiful breasts and trapped in a hug. The owner of the breasts was shorter than Yūji by a few centimeters but her body seemed pretty light compared to her bosom, wearing an open jacket and yellow sweater with jeans and boots. Her hair was blue and tied back in a small ponytail while her eyes were violet. "Dammit...Kuru..." he muffled.

"Yūji~!" the girl beamed excitedly. "Yahoo~! It's so good to see you again! It's been way too long!"

_OK, I'll be honest... I've never really told anyone about my other sisters. This is one of them, Kurumu. She a hyper girl and loves hugging the crap outta me with her boobs. I don't necessarily have a problem with it, but she scares the shit outta me when she does it so suddenly. But she's a sweet girl and we're really close when we've spent time together._

"Kurumu...boobs...crushing me," Yūji rasped.

"Kurumu-chan, can you please let go of Aniki?" Shinichi requested. "He can't help decorate the house if he's suffocated." Kurumu suddenly let go of Yūji and gasped. While Yūji was panting, Kurumu stared at Shinichi with eyes wide in shock as she covered her mouth. "Kurumu-chan?"

"Shin...chan..." she uttered in a whisper as her eyes began to water, welling up with tears. "It's you..." Shinichi then realized why she was reacting this way. Everyone knew he had gone missing two years ago. Kurumu had thought he had died when no news of him came up, until recently that is. "SHIN!" she yelled as she glomped Shinichi and knocked him to the floor. "You're back! You're back! You're back!" she cried jubilantly. She was happy, but Shinichi wasn't feeling the same way since her breasts were pressing down on his face and he couldn't breathe. His arms flailed about wildly before he gripped her shoulders and tried to pry the exuberant girl off him. "Momma, Shin-chan's back!"

"Did I hear right?!" Another woman entered the house, her hair (similar to Kurumu's) being long and wavy. She was a beautiful woman in her thirties, her J-Cup breasts her mat prominent feature. She was dressed in a red minidress, barely covering her generous cleavage and a black fur coat.

_Next up is my second "Aunt", Ageha. Compared to Kurumu, she's kinda crazy. But she's my kind of crazy. And yes, my dad has more than one wife. Kurumu is my half-sister, which makes sense. If I remember right, Ageha's part Scottish, so Kurumu's like...2/3's Japanese, I think._

"Kurumu...you better let go before you kill him," Yūji half-joked in caution. Kurumu gasped and released Shinichi who looked like he was close to death.

"I...saw...my life...flash before...my eyes!" gasped Shinichi after taking a deep breath of air.

"Yeah, good ol' Kurumu," Yūji mused before he received a head full of boobs from behind.

"And how has my Yū-chan been~?" Ageha greeted.

"You know...same old, Age-mama," he tried to lie. Ageha and Kurumu didn't know about Kamen Rider Liger or SHADOW.

Shinichi got up and greeted, "Konnichiwa, Aunt Ageha." He caught her glare. "I mean...Ageha-san." She didn't like being called 'aunt'. It made her feel old. She smirked and gave him a face full of boobies too as she cradled him in her arms. "I almost forgot about this..."

"Wait, somebody's missing," Yūji counted, shivering as he felt an eerie chill in the air and turned to greet his next guess. "Tsura-mama..."

The next woman before him was very youthful with silver-purple hair that was tied up, blue-purple eyes, and a lollipop in her mouth. She was dressed in a white kimono with a purple obi sash, Tali socks, and black zōri. "It's so good to see you, Yūji-kun," she smiled as she hugged Yūji.

"I can agree..." Yūji shivered a little.

_Yeah, this is my **third** "Aunt," Tsurara. She's really nice, but always cold (she's never mean though). She runs a ski resort up in the far north and she's married to my dad too. You see, I've gotten a lot of things from my dad. One thing in particular is that we can't resist to make women happy. He met mom and the others when they were still in school, and since he refused to choose between them he decided to marry all of our mothers._

"And someone's here who's been dying to see you again," she smiled.

Yūji had a feeling who Tsurara was referring to and looked to the side, spotting a figure hiding behind Tsurara. "Hey, Bunny," he smiled.

It was a girl, with light purple hair that was long and kind of messy, as well as blue colored eyes, which are nearly completely blue and have a bit of purple at the top of them. She wore a white sweatshirt with long dark blue sleeves, a black singlet underneath, and a yellow pendant over her neck. She wore a pair of denim jean shorts, long dark & light purple-striped stockings with white shoes and has a belt tied to her left leg. Like Tsurara, she had a lollipop in her mouth.

"Hi...Onii-chan," she blushed.

_This here is Mizore. She's super clingy but she's adorable. You see, Tsura-mama and Mizore are Yuki-Onna, mythical beings that are pretty human except for having ice powers and stuff like that. The cold is like paradise for them and they especially love the winter. As for Kurumu and Age-mama, they're Succubae. Yes, you heard right; my dad is married to a Succubus and a Yuki-Onna. But aside form the legends surrounding these 2 races, Tsura-mama and Age-mama are really cool. And Kurumu and Mizore are my half-sisters, so I love them. All of us got along... Well...that's not exactly true. Being the only guy out of four kids can be...weird. Yuki, Kurumu and Mizore would often fight over me, trying to get my attention since we were kids. And I was the one who always had to break up the fights. Well, they weren't really fights; they were more like whining and whatnot. Still, they're my sisters._

"Konnichiwa, Mizore-chan," Shinichi smiled. Mizore gasped, then smiled, before pulling her cousin into a gentle hug with tears in her eyes.

"You really did come back," she sighed happily.

"Yeah, I did," said Shinichi. "Thanks to Aniki."

"Where did you go...?"

"It's a long story...and I don't wanna talk about it," he stated, closing his eyes. "Let's not talk about bad stuff."

"Must be a miracle," Tsurara smiled.

"You got that right," Yūji agreed. "Now then, let's...uh-oh..."

All eyes were on Yuki, Kurumu and Mizore as they had a stare-down, the girls flaring with white, blue and purple auras respectively.

"Kurumu...Mizore," Yuki greeted flatly.

"Long time no see," Kurumu sneered, her gaze shifting between her half-sisters.

"Got that right," Mizore agreed. "Wish it could've been a little longer though..."

"And here we go," Yūji sighed.

"Oh yeah, I almost forgot about this," Shinichi realized. "They're rivals for your brotherly affection."

"Yeah, I'm surprised they haven't tried to assassinate each other yet," Yūji joked.

"They'll probably find a way to compete for you," Shinichi remarked.

"It's so good to see you two," Aki smiled as she hugged her "sisters".

"The feeling's mutual, sweetheart," Ageha returned.

"Yes, it's been far too long, even for a year," Tsurara agreed.

"And where is my husband?!"

Just then, Yūsei had entered the home next, shaking the snow out of his spiky hair and called out, "I'm back!"

"DARLING~!" Ageha called out as she glomped Yūsei.

"Ageha, show some restraint!" Tsurara demanded.

"Come on! You know me! How can I restrain myself in the presence of this sexy beast?"

"I can think of a few ways... Good to see you too, Ageha," Yūsei smiled as she helped him, only to be glomped by his other daughters as Kurumu and Mizore cried, "PAPA~!" "Good to see you girls, too..."

"We missed _you_, Papa~" Kurumu cried as she rubbed her cheek against his chest.

"Yes, we did," Mizore agreed.

"So did I," Yūsei smiled as he hugged his daughters.

"Looks like things never change, do they?"

Yūsei and his daughters looked up to see a woman looming over them, smirking down at them, as the daughters paled with fright. She was a young woman who has long, scarlet hair and brown eyes. She wore a blue jean jacket over a white button-down blouse, a blue pleated skirt, and black, knee-high, boots. She also had a slender body and a generous pair of breasts.

"Ah... Dammit," Kurumu paled.

"Erza...neechan," Mizore shivered.

"Hey there, Erza," Yūsei greeted as Kurumu and Mizore helped their father up, soon to be hugged by the redhead.

"It's good to see you again, Father," she sighed happily, revelling in the warmth of her father's body and comforting hug.

"I take it that your travelling is over," he assumed.

"Yes, for now," she replied, "Family comes before anything else." She released her father and went to her younger siblings as she captured them in a powerful headlock, the heads pressing against Erza's breasts. "And you two have become even more splendid than when we last met!"

"Thank you...Erza-nee," Kurumu groaned.

"Erza-neechan...can't breathe," Mizore paled.

"Now then," she smiled, "Where's my little brother?"

Yūji heard the familiar voice and froze, shaking fearfully as he slowly turned to the front door and paled, backing away as he started turning pale. "Oh...fuck me..."

_Yeah...this is my big sister: Erza. Her nickname is "Scarlet" and to say she's strong...is a total, fucking, understatement. She is, by far, the strongest teen I know. For as long as I've known her, nobody outside the family has ever beaten her. Nobody can match her strength. She's also the #1 Swordmaster of the family, second only to Uncle Jack. She's also known as "Titania Erza," but we'll get to that another time._

Shinichi looked to where Yūji was look and paled also, remembering the horror that was his eldest cousin. "Oh, crap...I forgot about her...!"

Erza blinked and saw the boys, her eyes wide as she realized that Shinichi, her cousin, had returned after an absence of 2 years. She dashed over to him as Shinichi screamed, being crushed in Erza's hug. "Shin...you've come back to us," she rejoiced as she was brought to tears. She was squeezing him tight and he was having a bit of trouble breathing.

"Yeah...I'm back, Erza-nee," Shinichi squeaked between breaths. "Please...my ribs...!" He gasped for air as he was released, regaining his breath as Erza patted his head lovingly. "It's really good to see you again..."

"Likewise, Shin," Erza smiled warmly, "I can't tell how much I've missed you. As for you," she regarded as she looked to Yūji who paled.

"Um...Aneki...hi?" Yūji tried to run as fast as he could when he was caught from behind. He was gasping for air from Erza's powerful hug.

"Not gonna say 'hello' to your loving sister, huh? You sure got guts, Little Brother," she grinned.

"No..Aneki! Please...! I love you, you know...?! I think my lungs are gonna fucking pop," Yūji cried as she let him go before kissing his cheek.

"That's better," Erza smiled.

"Still as affectionate as ever, Erza-nee," said Shinichi.

"Yes, and I even got souvenirs for you all from my travels. I've had them gift wrapped too," she said.

A new arrival said, "And I see you're all as wild as ever!" She had long, sandy-brown hair with a hime cut that fell just below her shoulders, and her bangs end somewhere at her chin. Her eyes were light brown and her skin was quite fair. Compared to the rest of the women in the room, she appeared to be somewhat more flat-chested. She wore a large, brown-furred coat over a blue vest over a white, long-sleeved shirt with a matching blue skirt.

"Hey, Rosa," Yūsei greeted

The woman, dubbed 'Rosa', merely shook her head with a musing smirk, "What am I going to do with you?"

"Papa~!" a little girl cheered as she jumped into Yusei's arms. She had shoulder-length brown hair and purple-blue eyes. She wore a beige coat with white furry cuffs, with a white cartoon rabbit pinned to her right breast pocket over a pink shirt, with a red bowtie, and a red skirt.

"Good to see you, Maria," Yūsei smiled as he held her in his arms, kissing his youngest daughter's cheek.

"UU~!" she squealed, "Where's Onii-chan?" Yūsei pointed to Yūji and let her down, Maria grinning as she ran and jumped onto his back before hugging Yuji by the neck as he nearly choked. "Onii-chan~!"

"Maria...! You're gonna kill me one of these days," Yūji choked.

_The last two to show up are Rosa and my half sister, Maria. She's the youngest of us and she loves magic. And I'm not talking about simple magic tricks like cutting people in half or pulling rabbits out of a stupid hat. Uh-Uh! I'm talking archaic, OLD SCHOOL magic! Spells, potions, incantations, the works! She may be 9, but she's a fucking genius. I am not kidding! And she's really good at hiding her smarts! And then there's Rosa, Dad's 4th wife. She owns a clothing company and she's pretty cool. She's probably the most serious and down to Earth woman I know._

_Now, you're probably wondering how my father could legally have four wives. Well, that's pretty simple which requires a brief history lesson. You see, about 100 or so years ago, Japan was attacked by an epidemic unlike anything it had ever experienced. People who contracted the disease died within 24 hours or less and even children weren't spared. Bodies were piling up as entire areas were quarantined. Medical scientists were working around the clock to create a cure but by the time it was ready, 50-60 percent of the entire population of Japan had perished. Even childbirth had suffered as babies born during the time of the epidemic were born as stillborn or unable to survive the disease once they contracted it. To solve this population problem, the government decided to pass a new law which allowed men to take more than one wife. For some reason, most of the male population had suffered and perished during the epidemic, leaving women to outnumber men 4 to 1. So, once the law had been passed, men started to take more wives to repopulate the country. There were some regulations though: _

_1. The man has to be able to support their additional wives and any children that they have together._

_2. If the man was married, the first wife needed to agree as well._

_3. The man must keep in periodic contact with their additional spouses and children at all times._

_4. A man could only have four wives, at most._

_At first there had been protests about this from feminist groups as it made them feel like their only purpose was to be 'baby factories'. The debate over the new law went on for years but considering how it is still in effect now, I guess everyone saw the benefits of it. Even though Japan no longer suffers from a low population, the law had yet to be abolished._

"Because I love my Onii-chan to _death_," she half-joked with a toothy grin as she giggled, "Kihihihi~!"

Shinichi could only shake his head amusingly. He always found that giggle of Maria's creepy, but she still loved all of his family.

"Looks like everyones here," Jack smirked.

"In that case, let's party!" Crow cheered. Everyone cheered for Crow before preparations continued, the three sisters clinging to their older brother while Shinichi watched with amusement.

* * *

_**December 24th (Christmas Eve)**_

Last minute Christmas shoppers were going towards the Neo Domino Mall to get their loved ones the presents they wanted. This was the price of procrastination. With the Christmas season taking place, prices were slashed as items were sold half their original price. It was the Christmas Sale so people were going to all sorts of stores. Toy Stores were packed with parents trying to find the perfect gift for their kids. The Mall Santa was also getting a bit sore in the lap with all the kids who came to sit in it and ask for something.

And Shinichi was working on Christmas Eve too. He'd gotten a part-time gig as one of Santa's elves. He was dressed in the green tunic, with red and white striped tights, elf boots, pointed ears and the hat. He would've been humiliated but he was used to dressing up. He had actually been put in more embarrassing clothing as a child. Shinichi gently lifted a little girl off Santa's lap and put her down to the floor before another child took her place. A little boy, 7 years old.

"And what would you like for Christmas, little boy?" Santa asked and the boy grinned cheekily before tearing off Santa's white beard. "Hey!"

"Hah, I knew you were fake!" the kid yelled triumphantly. Shinichi took him off Santa's lap and the mother apologized while returning the beard.

"Is this really worth it, Uncle Jack?" Shinichi asked as Jack Atlas fixed his beard. "I mean, I know Aunt Carly is making you do this..."

"No, I'm happy to do this," said Jack. "I mean, just look at those kids." They had fortunately missed the part when that brat had taken off his beard. Their parents had been quick enough to cover their eyes. I mean, it would be too much of a shock to shatter the fantasy for the little ones.

Shinichi looked and he understood. The kids were happy. Sure, the parents were stressed out but to see children happy during Christmas was worth all the stress.

"Jack," Carly called as she bounced over to the group and kissed Jack on the cheek. "Thanks for doing this." She got rid of the glasses she used to wear and went for darker colors in her wardrobe, wearing black jeans and a red turtleneck with a black vest. She took a picture of Shinichi and Jack in their outfits and giggled, "You two look so cute together!"

"Well, it's Christmas and this is for the kids," Jack smiled.

Shinichi then noticed something as a snowflake fell on his nose. "Huh?" It was snowing inside of the mall.

"Wow, they're really making it snowing," smiled Carly. She began to shiver. "Brr…the temperature just went down." She breathed and she could see her breath.

"This can't be right," said Jack as he started to feel chilly, even in his Santa costume.

"We're going sub-zero," Shinichi frowned as he studied the snow falling from the ceiling. "This isn't normal. It's not natural and neither is it man-made."

Suddenly, the sound of shattering glass caught their attention and Shinichi raced towards the source. He then found men clad in familiar black clothing, attacking the stores, breaking their windows and stealing all they had. Electronics, toy stores, and appliances were being taken as the staff tried desperately to stop them, only to be mercilessly put down.

"SHADOW," Shinichi identified, eyes narrowed. He then spotted two large in-human figures in armor and his blood ran cold.

One was covered in white, his feet made of caterpillar treads and ice covering his arms shoulders and stomach, his huge arms wabbling some as he skidded forward. His face was covered save for his white helmet, green eyes, and carrot-like red nose, while large snow blowers were attached to his shoulders.

The second had huge hoofs and massive fists, its head resembling a buffalo as white smoke puffed out of the nostrils. cables extended from the back of its to the back as the beast was colored red, white, and blue.

These two Mech-Beasts were members of the Arctic Squad.

"What's going on?" Jack asked as he caught up to Shinichi with Carly.

"Uncle Jack, Aunt Carly, I need you to call Aniki," said Shinichi. He then dashed off to find someplace where he could transform without being seen. He found a photo booth and smiled before darting in. He then pulled out his belt and put it on. "Henshin!" He opened up the buckle to generate his suit.

Meanwhile, the Mech-Beasts and SHADOW Troopers were causing chaos as the civilians fled. Unfortunately for a few stragglers, Blizzard Buffalo shot his ice beam at them and froze them solid.

"Behold, true art!" declared Blizzard Buffalo. "Isn't it magnificent?"

"It'll be even more fun to smash them," said Avalanche Yeti. He approached a frozen mother and child. "These will do nicely." He reared back his fist to shatter them when all of a sudden he was knocked back by a red energy blast. Other energy blasts hit the SHADOW Troopers and Blizzard Buffalo, knocking them back from the frozen civilians.

"BLACK 13!" they identified. The Black Rider glared at them. He then activated his Slash Sonic and put the blades together, generating his **Howling Scream**. The sonic wave spread out and the ice covering the civilians shattered, freeing them. Howling Scream was a volatile attack and only the right frequency would work. If he had gotten it wrong, the people would've been shattered as well.

"So, BLACK 13, you're here," said Avalanche Yeti. "Must be a Christmas Miracle! I mean, we've been very naughty but we still get a present!"

"Leave," Black Rider ordered. "Leave and I'll let you live."

"Is that supposed to frighten us?" Blizzard Buffalo sneered.

"Nope, this is!"

The two were peppered by beam fire as they blocked the blasts, seeing Liger Zero landing next to Black Rider. "Aniki!" said Black Rider.

"Sorry I'm late," Liger apologized, "When Uncle Jack and Aunt Carly said it was snowing in the mall, I wasn't sure if they were serious. Then they mentioned you." He looked at the two Mech-Beasts. "So, who are these guys?"

"Avalanche Yeti and Blizzard Buffalo, two members from the five-man Sub-Zero Squad."

"Catchy," he remarked, "So let's beat their asses and make'em scream for mama!" Liger paused and blanched, "...That sounded a lot more threatening in my head."

"I'm sure it did," Black Rider sighed. "Heads Up!" Blizzard Buffalo charged at them with his head down and horns pointed at the cousins. Black Rider pushed Liger out of the way and caught Blizzard Buffalo's horns as the massive Mech-Beast pushed him backwards. Black Rider dug his heels into the floor to stop but Blizzard Buffalo was physically more stronger than he was. Blizzard Buffalo then tossed Black Rider up and as he descended he pummeled the black-clad Rider with a barrage of punches, sending Black Rider tumbling along the floor. Blizzard Buffalo fired an ice beam at Black Rider to freeze him but he dodged by jumping to the side. He activated Acceleration and ran straight at Blizzard Buffalo, who countered by covering the floor in a layer of ice. Black Rider slipped and fell on his back before he was stomped down by Blizzard Buffalo, pinning him to the floor.

Meanwhile, Liger Zero was fighting Avalanche Yeti, the heat of his beam sabers melting the barrage of icicles before evading a punch from the yeti. The Rider dove forward, sliding under him, as he drew his beam daggers as he chucked them into Avalanche Yeti's caterpillar feet. The Mech-Beast wobbled as it fell forward and tumbled with a loud thud. He noticed his cousin in trouble. "Shin!" He knocked Avalanche Yeti backwards with a kick and switched cards.

**"JAGER FORM!"**

His armor changed quickly and Jäger dashed across the room as he rammed into Blizzard Buffalo, the Mech Beast getting its horns stuck in the wall as it tried to get free, while Jäger tended to his ally and cousin. "You good?" He held his hand out to his cousin and Black Rider took it so Jager could pull him back to his feet.

"I'm good," said Shinichi. "Now, I think it's time we showed these asshats why it's not cool to mess around during Christmas Eve!"

Avalanche Yeti struggled as he got closer to his comrade. "Perhaps...we should take our leave, yes?"

"Agreed," Blizzard Buffalo nodded. Avalanche Yeti's snow blowers unleashed a blizzard of snow to provide cover as a crashing sound was heard. Once the snow cleared, there was nothing left but a hole in the wall where Blizzard Buffalo stood, the two Mech-Beasts gone.

"They...actually bolted," Jäger blinked.

"We'll be seeing them again," said Black Rider. "Come on, we better find a place to change back without anyone seeing us." With that said, Black Rider used Acceleration and blurred away.

"Least nobody got hurt," Jäger sighed.

* * *

_**December 25th (Christmas)**_

"Merry Christmas!" Shinichi, Yūji and Yuki greeted. Yuki's greeting was a little more softer, due to her quiet tone.

"You made it!" Milly greeted as she hugged the cousins. She had called a Christmas meeting at the Student Council building at school for an exclusive party and was glad the cousins could make it. She then spotted more guests as she saw Erza, Kurumu holding Maria in her arms, and Mizore behind them. "Oh, you brought guests~!"

"Hi, Yūji invited me," Kurumu blushed.

Mizore was hiding behind Yūji as she peeked out from behind him and greeted, "...Hello..."

"It's nice to meet Yūji's friends," Erza greeted.

"I'm Maria," the little girl beamed.

"Hello there, cutie," Milly beamed.

"Everyone's inside?" Yūji asked.

"But of course," Milly smiled as she guided them inside before Yūji was glomped by Michiru, much to Mizore and Kurumu's distress.

"Merry Christmas, Yūji-kun!" Michiru cheered.

"Good to see you, Yūji-bozu," Misato grinned as she approached with Hana.

"You brought guests," Hana observed.

"These are my sisters," Yūji introduced, "Erza, Kurumu and Mizore, and our little sister, Maria."

Misato licked her lips as she was seemingly undressing Kurumu and Mizore with her eyes. "Interesting~"

"You never mentioned anything about having more sisters," Hana glared.

"Nobody ever asked," Yūji shrugged.

"Nice to meet you, Yūji-kun's sisters!" Michiru greeted as she hugged Kurumu and Mizore.

"Uh...thanks," Kurumu blushed along with Mizore as they both thought, _'Great, more competition...'_

"Wonderful, his harem increased," Yokoshima grumbled before getting bopped over the head by Daichi.

"Don't be jealous," he chided.

"So this is what goes on during your meetings."

Yūji turned to see Tomoyo, standing at the door with a brown coat. "Sakagami? What are you doing here?"

"Ashford-san invited me," she shrugged, "I didn't want to be rude, so I accepted."

"I figured that since you were friends with Yūji it wouldn't be a problem," Milly chided.

"I...we're not exactly friends," Tomoyo blushed as she tried to look away, "We just talk once in awhile..."

_'And yet another girl falls for Aniki's charms,' _Shinichi mused.

Daichi looked to see Yokoshima hiding behind Chiaki and sighed, "It's your fault she beats the crap out of you."

"Shut up," Yokoshima hissed.

"I still can't understand how he's a member on the Council," Tomoyo sighed.

"It's something nobody can understand," Yūji agreed.

"Well, whatever," Shogo spoke up, "Now let's party, dammit!" He received cheers from the rest of the Student Council and guests as they made preparations.

* * *

After the Christmas Party at the Student Council building, the group had one more stop to make. It was a local orphanage and the children there were waiting for Santa to come and deliver presents. The door opened up in the orphanage's playing room and Milly announced, "Merry Christmas! Ohohohoho!" She was dressed like Santa and carrying a bag of presents. Hana, Misato, Michiru, Yuki and even Erza, Kurumu and Mizore were dressed as her elves. As for the boys...they were wearing plush reindeer costumes which revealed only their faces.

"I can't believe she made us wear these," said Daichi, feeling humiliated.

"Believe it," said Yokoshima.

"At least she didn't make you Rudolph," said Yūji as he pointed to the glowing red nose he was wearing.

"Come on, guys," said Shinichi. "It's Christmas!"

"Hihihihi! Onii-chan looks so cute," Maria giggled.

"Dude, your baby sister's creepy," Yokoshima quipped before he got bopped by Yūji.

"Try and say that again," Yūji challenged.

Maria went and pressed her hand against Yuji's belly. It made a loud '_piiiiiiiiiiiiii_!' sound. Everyone laughed.

The Student Council began to give away presents to the orphans.

_You know, it's times like this that makes life worthwhile. My cousin is back, my family's together, and I've got great friends. The only pain in the ass I have to deal with right now is SHADOW. Those fuckers are gonna pay for what they've done. __**Count on it.**_

_**つづく**_

**MERRY CHRISTMAS!**

* * *

**KRB: And here is the next one! Sorry this one took so long. Wanted to get this out around Christmas, but oh well. We introduce some familiar characters with an alternate background (they belong to respective owners/creators).**


	12. Let's Go to the Festival!

**Tail 12: Let's Go to the Festival!**

Yūji opened his eyes and found himself on a dirt path in the middle of a forest. "Hm, where am I?"

"Nya~!" Yūji turned to the sound of the voice and spotted a Chibi-Michiru standing at his feet, with cat ears on top and in a black cat suit with a tail. "Nya~!"

**MICHIRU-KITTY WANTS TO COME WITH YOU**

**YES?**  
**NO?**

"OK, come on then," Yūji welcomed. Michiru-Kitty purred then climbed up Yūji's hand before riding on his head. She purred.

That's when Yūji concluded, "Must be a dream."

"How can you say that so easily?" asked a Chibi-Milly who was in a pink dress with fairy wings.

**CUTE FAIRY HAS APPEARED BEFORE YOU!**

Yūji patted her head and she blushed.

"Hm, so Milly's a fairy, huh?" Yūji pondered out loud. "Pretty cute."

"Thank you," Milly beamed.

"So, this is a dream," said Yūji.

"Anyway...Michiru here was cursed and turned into a kitty by the Evil Witch Hana," said Fairy Milly.

"So, this dream has a quest, huh?" Yūji asked.

**ACCEPT QUEST?**

**IT'S ADVENTURE TIME!**

Yūji travelled with Fairy Milly flying alongside him and Michiru Kitty on his head. The kitten and fairy were quite fond of their human companion as they stayed close to him. Yūji didn't mind either as he went about his business as they traveled the road. They had reached the castle, which was surrounded by a wall and there was a huge wooden gate in front. Yūji tried to push the gate open, but his efforts were in vain as the doors couldn't budge. "Hm, sturdy...!"

"YOU'RE NOT GETTING INSIDE!" They all looked up to see a human figure jump off the top of the wall...then land on his head. "Itai..." he groaned. It was Yokoshima, dressed in robes.

**EVIL GATEKEEPER HAS APPEARED!**

Yokoshima recovered and got back to his feet with a large lump on his head. He declared, "If you wanna enter, then answer my questions three!"

"Yokoshima, don't make me noogie you," Yūji threatened.

"You wouldn't...!"

Michiru Kitty had other ideas as she got off Yūji's head, approached the wall, then tapped her paw against it. "Nya!"

**BOOM!**

The part she touched exploded and she had just blasted a hole in the shape of a paw. Gatekeeper Yokoshima gawked with his jaw dropped.

**INFILTRATION SUCCESSFUL!**

The trio entered the castle and Yūji asked, "So, she'll be dressed like a witch, huh?"

"You'll know when you see her," nodded Milly.

"Is that her?" Yūji pointed and Michiru Kitty and Fairy Milly looked to see Witch Hana in a net that was hanging in the air.

"Please, get me out of here!" cried Hana.

**RELEASE THE WITCH?**

"Thank you! I was trapped up there...I mean, congratulations for making it this far!" Witch Hana declared. She was dressed in a short dress with a spider web pattern and had a witch's hat on. She also had a staff pointed threateningly at him.

"Actually, could you break the spell on Michiru?" requested Yūji.

"Well...usually I don't do that, but since you helped me out it's easy," shrugged Hana. "Just a kiss."

"A kiss?" Yūji asked. He then shrugged as he picked up Michiru Kitty. "OK."

CHU~!

* * *

**DECEMBER 29TH**

"OK, Shinichi, load them up," said Shiori as Shinichi carried boxes into the back of her car. It was very early morning and she wanted to get to the Tokyo Big Sight in time for Comiket. It was now the Winter Comiket and Shiori wanted to sell and promote one of her latest novels. Comiket was a place for doujin artists to promote and sell their self-published works. It could be anything from manga, novels, or even games. Shiori, being a popular novelist, had her humble beginnings at Comiket.

"These are a lot of novels, Kaa-chan," said Shinichi. "Are you sure we'll be able to sell them all."

"Of course," said Shiori. "Especially since your cousins will help."

"Too bad Tou-chan can't come because of work," Shinichi frowned.

"That's OK," said Shiori. "Now, lock the trunk and get in. We're heading to Ariake! The others will meet us there!"

* * *

Comiket was a festival, and a big deal among the Otaku community. Fans of manga would come to acquire new material for their collection as the works here were original. They were mostly made and published by fans like themselves who used pre-existing material for their own works. In addition, there were a lot of cosplayers and even several businesses that sold manga and games were present to sell their wares.

Yūji and the Student Council were recruited by Shiori to help her out. Yūji and Yuki really couldn't refuse their aunt. Yūji's other sisters wanted to sleep in, so they stayed behind. Only Erza was awake so she had tagged along, mostly to see Shiori since she's been away for so long. Also, Milly wanted to visit Comiket since she never attended one before. The group had to endure sitting in a train which was slowly being occupied by Otaku. At each stop, groups of Otaku would fill up the train cars until there was no space to sit or stand. It would've been a claustrophobic's worst nightmare come to life. Fortunately, they had each other so the trip was bearable.

"Did anybody have any interesting dreams last night, because I dreamed I was a fairy," said Milly.

"I dreamed I was a gatekeeper and a cat broke my wall," said Yokoshima.

"I dreamed I was a witch," said Hana.

Michiru beamed, "And I dreamt..." She paused. "A secret~"

"Well, I was dreaming..._other things_," Misato smirked as she turned her eyes to Yūji.

The gang finally got to their stop and exited the train. They had to deal with a lot of pushing and shoving as the Otaku tried to get out. Then they had to walk all the way to Comiket's venue. The streets heading towards Comiket were crowded. Security guards were needed to keep order. This was one of the biggest comic book conventions in Japan and fans from all over the country were gathered.

"So many people..." said Milly as she looked around. "This really is a festival of Japanese culture!"

"It's just a sub-culture," Daichi remarked, "Don't get too into it, Milly-kaichou."

"Yo! What's up!" a petite girl with blue hair that could've been mistaken for a grade-schooler greeted the Student Council. She was alone. "You're Banabara-san's cousins, right?"

"Oh, and you're Izuma-san," Yūji recalled. This was one of Shinichi's classmates. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm an Otaku, and this is my treasure trove," Konata boasted, fist to her chest proudly. "But what is Neo Domino High's Student Council doing here?"

"Helping the family," Yūji answered, his sister nodding as she held his hand tightly

"This is gonna be so much fun!" Michiru beamed, "I've never been to a convention before."

"And look at all the cosplayers," Yokoshima drooled as he was checking out girls in costumes.

"Ah, Yūji-kun! Yuki-chan! You came!" Shiori smiled with Shinichi behind her carrying the boxes. Her eyes lit up as she saw Erza as well, hugging the redhead, "Erza-chan~!"

"It's good to see you too, Aunt Shiori," Erza welcomed.

"Could somebody take these off my hands, please?" Shinichi requested.

"I gotcha," Daichi offered, taking a couple of boxes in each hand.

"Now, girls," Shiori smiled. "While the boys set up our table I am going to need you to come with me."

"...I have a bad feeling about this," Hana feared.

* * *

"Why must I dress up like this...?" Hana demanded. The girls were all dressed up as maids, but the dresses had short skirts and the necklines were low cut to reveal cleavage. The outfits were mainly black with short puffy sleeves and white aprons around their waists. They also wore leather bodices and fishnet stockings.

"Look at the novel title," Misato said as she handed it to Hana and she read the title.

"_3M: Moe Maid Model,_" Hana read, "Well, that explains it..."

"And Yūji's watching you~" she teased as she pointed over to Yūji staring. Hana averted his gaze and blushed. "And look at how much attention Erza's getting!"

Erza was getting a lot of attention in her costume as she made poses for attendants as they took pictures with their cameras.

Daichi could only stare until he asked, "OK, how?"

"Oh, Sis is basically a hardcore cosplayer," Yūji answered.

"This is just adorable~" Milly gushed as she twirled around in her uniform, "So, what are we supposed to do?"

"Just look pretty," said Shiori. "With your looks and those costumes, customers are gonna be lining up for my books." She had a limited stock of 90 novels in total. They were 500 yen each and exclusively sold at Comiket.

"I really missed this," said Shinichi as he smiled.

"You've been to Comiket?" asked Michiru.

"Shinichi and I come every year, for the Summer Comiket and Winter Comiket," said Shiori. "Sometimes we even stay for the entire duration of the convention."

"The first time Kaa-chan brought me here was I was 6 years old," said Shinichi. "It was amazing. We stayed in a hotel and we even went to arcades."

"You know, this explains a lot," remarked Misato.

"OK, we know why the girls are here, Shiori-ma, but why do you need us?" Yuji asked. Shiori grinned and handed the boys maps and individual shopping lists.

"When in Comiket, you need to buy stuff!" said Shiori. "I've given you all different lists so you know what you need to get. Your routes have each been drawn."

"So, we're like gonna shop for you?" Daichi asked incredulously.

"Yes, and we'll man the shop," said Shiori, referring to their table. "I mean, I can't really attract customers with boys in maid outfits, even if that caters to a percentage of the Otaku population. If you were bishōnen, maybe, but..." Shiori sighed.

"OK, we get it, we get it," Daichi replied.

"Come on, Dai. It'll be fun," said Yokoshima. "What's the worst that can happen?"

"Every time you say that I need to pray to the gods that nothing goes wrong, Yoko," retorted Daichi.

"Well, Shiori-ma, have fun," Yuji said. "You too, girls."

* * *

Shiori's table was the most popular as guys took pictures of the girls that she was using to promote her new book. They lined up to buy a copy. Stocks were quite limited but as she was a popular novelist her books always ended up as bestsellers. By the first hour, she'd already sold 35 copies.

"Not bad," said Yuki. Things were starting to slow down.

"Well, things are gonna be moving along fast in the next half hour," said Shiori. "Maybe you girls should take a break and look around to see and do here in Comiket."

"I miss Yū-kun," Michiru sighed.

"Then let's go find him and give'em some _special _service," Misato grinned.

"Bow-chicka-bow-wow," Shinichi muttered under his breath.

* * *

"OK, I'm _really _starting to hate this," grumbled Daichi.

**"How come?"** Chiaki signed.

"Banabara-san made me go and buy Yaoi titles," said Daichi. "People have been giving me odd looks." He asked, "What list did you get?"

"**Yuri**," Chiaki signed in embarrassment, blushing.

"Seriously, why do we have to get these things for her?"

**"For her inspiration?" **

"If that's what you wanna call it," Daichi shrugged.

* * *

Yūji was whistling to himself without a care as he carried his stash of comics. Since he had been to these conventions, it was pretty much a breeze through the place as he knew the purchasing and sales patterns.

"This ain't even a challenge anymore," he bragged. That's when Neko-Chaos, Neko-Destiny, and Neko-Bubbles materialized out of puffs of smoke, with Bubbles sitting on his head, Chaos on his right shoulder, and Destiny on his right shoulder. "Oh, it's you guys."

"You sure know what you're doing, Yūji," Neko-Destiny purred.

"Un-Un-Un!" Neko-Bubbles nodded.

"Well, I've been doing this since my first convention back in the day," Yūji argued. He remembered how it was; back when he was 7 years old, he had gotten separated from Yuki and cried as he was alone. He had to be taken to the security office until he was found by Shiori and his sister & cousin. It was embarrassing, but things like that do happen. He'd come a long way since then. He knew what stands had the most merchandise, which had the most popular items, and knew exactly what and when certain items would sell out.

"But I'm sure you're happy that your aunt and cousin are able to do this again," said Neko-Destiny.

Yūji agreed. Shiori had lost her reason to participate in Comiket since Shinichi went missing. This was her first Comiket since; the same could be said of Yūji as he only went when Shiori would go.

* * *

Shiori had sent Shinichi to buy some drinks. That was when he saw someone he recognized at a table selling her latest doujinshi. She had long green hair and antennae hair like his. She also wore square-rimmed glasses. She also wore a beret on her head. He approached the table and greeted, "Konnichiwa, Saotome-san."

Saotome Haruna was an aspiring manga artist and she enjoyed drawing.

"Ah, Banabara-kun!" Haruna smiled. "Konnichiwa! What are you doing here?"

"Same reason you're here, Saotome-san."

"Now, don't call me that. In these circles I am the Great Paru-sama!"

"Hai...Paru-sama..."

"So, if you're here...I can only assume that Banabara-sensei is here as well, am I right?" Haruna asked.

"We've got a table not far from here, selling copies of her latest novels," Shinichi said.

"Comiket exclusive, right?"

"You know it."

Haruna grabbed his hand and pleaded, "Save me a copy, please?"

"I'll try," said Shinichi.

"Ah, thanks. Now I know why Honya-chan likes you."

Shinichi blushed at the mention of that name and rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment, "Hai, hai." He added, "Well, I gotta go! Kaa-chan really needs me to get her drinks!"

"See ya later!" Haruna called as he ran off. She mused, "Honya-chan, you are a lucky girl."

* * *

Shiori had sold out after half the day in Comiket so now they could actually have fun looking around. The girls got a lot of attention as their pictures were taken. Yokoshima went over to Yuji and grinned.

"Why are you grinning like that?" Yuji asked.

"You know, if you came out in that suit, people would think you were a cosplayer. Maybe charge people for photos..." Yokoshima suggested.

"I am _not_ a cosplayer," Yūji hissed. "And Liger is meant for combat _only_, not fanservice."

"Aw..." Yokoshima pouted.

"Aniki's right," agreed Shinichi. "When the armor is used it's only for combat, not for something so trivial." He looked around, "I just wish that there was no reason to use it at all." He meant that he wished SHADOW didn't exist.

He felt Yūji grip his shoulder before receiving a gentle shake. "Because of them, I know it works," he grinned, "Let's just focus on shutting them down once we have the chance. Get me?"

* * *

At the end of Comiket, as the sun was beginning to set, Shinichi and Shiori realized that there just wasn't space in the car for the stuff she had sent the boys to buy. "OK, this is gonna be a problem," said Shiori. "There's barely enough space to fit the bags inside."

"You told us to buy one of everything, remember?" Daichi asked in annoyance. "These were on your lists. Where do you keep these things, anyway?"

"No need to be salty," Yūji admonished.

"Kaa-chan has a room just for her collection," said Shinichi. "And sometimes she keeps a few things in my room." He looked to Shiori, "Not the Yaoi stuff, I hope."

"Of course," nodded Shiori. "That's going with my secret stash." She said to the boys, "And I'll be sure to pay you back for your help." She beamed as she fished a set of photos out of her pocket and handed them to Yūji with a grin as she whispered, "I took pictures of the girls for you. And I even got one of Yuki-chan!"

Yūji blushed as he pocketed the pictures, "Thanks..."

"This has been so much fun..." sighed Milly happily.

"Great, because I'll be counting on you next time in the summer," said Shiori.

"Yeah," Michiru cheered, "I wanna do it again!"

* * *

**JANUARY 1ST**

The gang was standing in line for the morning temple visit. As it was the first day of the new year, it was customary to ask for blessings for the rest of the year. Most of them were wearing winter coats and scarves. It was still winter, and still cold. Hana, on the other hand, was dressed in a kimono. It was colored black with a red spider web pattern all over it and she had her hair up in a bun. She really contrasted with the rest of the group, being the only one in traditional garb on the first day of the new year.

"Looking fancy there, Hana," Yūji grinned.

"Thank you," Hana blushed.

It was a long line and the gang had to wait before it was their turn. Yokoshima fell asleep in line twice before waking up with a sneeze every so often. Once their turn came, they tossed money into the offering box, rang the bell, and prayed, asking for blessings for the new year.

"Hey, don't you guys think the mikos are cute?" Yokoshima asked.

"It's the clothes, Yokoshima," Yūji answered. "They're simple, mobile, and light. I'm more surprised at how they can tolerate this fucking cold wearing _just_ those outfits!"

"You always did hate the cold," Daichi agreed.

"Winter is fine, even if it's cold, on a bright, sunny day. It's the fucking wind chill that burns the most," Yūji hissed. "Oh, and sometimes, mikos don't even wear anything underneath."

"Pervert," Hana hissed.

"Blame my aunt," he shrugged. "You wouldn't believe the bedtime stories she would read to us when we were growing up."

"She wouldn't really...?" began Hana in disbelief.

"She did," Shinichi confirmed.

"You know, Yūji, I think I wouldn't mind being a miko," smiled Milly thoughtfully.

The suggestion got Yūji red as he imagined his friend and President in a miko outfit, her bust barely contained as her cleavage was exposed. This got him drooling a little and grinning like an idiot as his face was slightly red.

"How about we go buy our fortunes right now?" Shinichi suggested. "Then we can warm ourselves up with the snacks and sake they're selling."

"No drinking," Hana ordered.

"Come on, Hana-chan," Michiru urged. "It's New Year's Day. Let's celebrate!"

"I gotta go with Hana on this one," Yūji agreed, surprising the group. "Bad things happen to me when I drink."

Shogo couldn't help himself and asked, "What kind of bad things?"

"_Very_ bad things," Yūji emphasized. It had to be serious if he denied them so strongly from drinking. _'Yeah, I remember what happened last time,'_ he thought, _'Jack and Crow won't get me this year; I swear it.'_

"Well, suit yourselves," Shinichi shrugged. He'd discovered that because of his cybernetic enhancements he could not get drunk. It was due to his accelerated metabolism.

* * *

The Student Council Gang went and bought their fortune paper slips (Omikuji) from the mikos and what they got varied.

Yokoshima stared at his fortune paper slip and went pale at what he got. "Oh, this can't be good..." he groaned.

While Yūji didn't receive a bad fortune, his was certainly what he deemed to be strange as it read: _"You relations with the opposite sex can only grow and continue to complicate. Tread cautiously."_ "Definitely weird," he nodded.

"YUJI~!"

The young Fudo had little to no time to react as he got a face full of chest as Kurumu had hugged him, dressed in pink winter clothes as she had found the Student Council.

"Kurumu...dammit," he choked, "Let go at least...!"

"You're fault for leaving us behind," she frowned. "And I brought Erza-nee and the Stalker-Girl with me."

The Student Council felt a chill in the air as they saw Mizore poking out from behind a tree a few feet away from them, smiling as she kept her eyes on Yūji.

"She sure does that often," Daichi shivered. Chiaki could only nod as he was trying to warm up.

"Onii-chan~!" Maria cried as she jumped and almost headbutted Yūji in the gut, thankful he was able to catch her.

"Have you been good?" he asked.

"Yes," she beamed.

"Does Rosa-mama know you're out here?"

"UU~, Mama knows because Mizo-nee and Kuru-nee said they'd take me to you," she beamed, her fang showing with a happy grin.

"New Year's is certainly a wonderful time," Erza commented, "And it's good to see you all again."

"Likewise," Shogo welcomed while Chiaki gave a courteous nod.

Shinichi was reading his fortune which only said the following, "_Your situation will only get worse before it gets better._" It was a future blessing (sue-kichi). The fortune also advised him to prepare for '_a bad situation_' and to be careful of '_suspicious individuals_'. He felt a tug on his jacket and looked to see Maria looking up at him.

"Shi-nii, you don't look well," she noted. She hugged him tightly in an attempt to comfort him. She had missed him too during the two years he went missing.

"It's nothing, Maria-chan," smiled Shinichi. "Did you buy your fortune yet?"

"Not yet," said Maria.

"Come on, I'll buy your fortune for you and then buy you some cotton candy from one of the stalls."

"OK!" she beamed. "Kihihihihihi!" He gently took her hand and led her to the booth where a miko was selling the fortune slips.

"I've said it once and I'm gonna say it again: _creepy _kid," remarked Yokoshima. He got bopped on the head by Yūji as a result.

"Don't talk about my baby sister like that," Yūji scolded.

* * *

Maria sat on a bench with Shinichi as she enjoyed the cotton candy he'd bought for her. Shinichi himself was eating a barbecued sausage on a stick. On another bench sat the Fudo Sisters, Kurumu herself was eating the same thing but in a suggestive manner. Michiru had a choco-banana and the way she ate it made a lot of boys stare at her. Mizore and Yuki were also sharing a popsicle, eating it the same way her sister and Michiru were as the boys were getting hot under the collars.

"Hey, lemme get in on some of that!" Misato demanded.

"Me too~!" Milly seconded.

"That behavior is not appropriate in public!" Hana hissed.

Shinichi smiled with amusement but then he spotted a familiar face in the crowd. She was cute, petite, a head shorter than he was, slender, and had short indigo hair with a violet tint. Her bangs were hiding her eyes.

"Hey, Aniki! I just spotted someone from my class! I'm gonna go say hi," Shinichi told his brother.

"Sure," said Yūji as he took Shinichi's place next to Maria. "Enjoying the candy?"

"Fluffy~" she beamed. He patted her head and she let out a sound like a kitten purring. She was just so cute and he had a feeling she would grow up to be a beautiful girl.

A lot had happened last year, things that Yūji was grateful for and things he could do without. For one, he got his cousin back. He could've done without the evil SHADOW organization breathing down his neck, but it was unavoidable now. Still, he had his cousin, his friends and his family watching his back.

* * *

**STUDENT COUNCIL NEW YEAR'S PARTY**

After the shrine visit, the Student Council all decided to move their party over to their headquarters. It seemed that Milly had it all planned out. It was the New Year, a day of new beginnings. Hanging on the walls were scrolls which each had their respective New Year resolutions written on them. Yuji's sisters, with an exception of Maria, also attended the party.

"What happened to Hana?" Yūji asked, referring to the girl who looked sloshed. Her face was bright red and her eyes were looking glassy.

"We wanted her to loosen up, so we got her to drink some sake," said Misato as she was supporting Hana.

"Then she asked for another, and another, and another..." Michiru added. "And well..."

"She's drunk," Yūji concluded and both girls nodded.

"Huh, never seen Hana drunk before," Yokoshima grinned.

"Bet we can't let her live this down once somebody tells her," Daichi grinned.

"Wow," Shogo sighed, "Asshole much?"

"Only in rare opportunities," Daichi corrected, "Like this." He held up a video camera. "Milly asked me to tape it for posterity."

Erza's cheeks were red and frowned, "Yūji! Serve you big sister! Do you want to be beaten like a dog?!"

"What the fu-? No! What the hell, Sis?!" Yūji demanded.

Hana hiccuped as she called out, "Yūji~"

"...What's up," Yūji cringed as Hana stalked closer, "You don't look so good right now, Hana. Maybe you should lie down..."

"Then come and lie with me," she smirked. "Is it getting hot here...?"

"A little too hot if you ask me..." Mizore sighed as she tried fanning herself. Her face was red too and she started to undress, much to the boys' shock.

"Mizore! What are you doing?!" Yūji demanded.

"Go, sister," Kurumu cheered, "Take it off! Oh, man, feels like my skin is on fire~" she slurred as she started undressing too.

"Kurumu!"

"I think...I'm about to pass out," Yokoshima shook as he was suffering from a nosebleed.

**"Yūji, you might wanna do something,"** Chiaki signed, **"I think the girls are drunk."**

"Yeah, they're _really_ drunk," Shogo agreed.

"Your face is...drunk," Milly slurred as she started snickering.

"Alright, whose idea was it to bring alcohol?" Shinichi asked. "Seriously, this is getting out of hand!"

"Yuji~ pull my obi~" Hana demanded.

"Oh, geez..." Yūji couldn't think of what to do before he felt a tug on his arm, looking back to see Yuki, who was also drunk. "Yuki...?"

She looked at him before looking to her friends and sisters, "Minna, we're going." And she pulled her brother away as the girls followed after; all of them ignoring Yūji's protests as they fell on deaf ears, as the boys watched them all leave up the stairs and into a hall.

"We're not going to be seeing them for the rest of the party, are we?" Yokoshima asked.

"If my guess is right, Hell no," Daichi nodded, "Happy Fucking New Year, everybody. Some things just remain the same."

(LINE BREAK)

Yūji had awoken after what felt like a long sleep, his eyes opening up to the sight of an unfamiliar ceiling as he could hear multiple breaths around him. His eyes shifting from side to side, he spotted Milly sleeping beside him on his right while Kurumu was on his left, hugging his arm tightly. He tilted his head up to see the others sleeping as well, all with satisfied looks on their sleeping faces as they were all (including himself) naked under the blanket of the huge bed. He couldn't help but be perplexed as he lied back down to look back up at the ceiling.

_Holy shit... I just slept with my friends __**and**__ my sisters! The fuck's gonna happen to me now?! I actually __**slept**__...with __**all**__ of them!_

"Ugh..." Yūji heard groaning from his left as he leaned up to see Hana waking up as she held her head with uncomfortable, throbbing headache. "What happened...?" Her vision cleared up and she turned red as she saw all the girls, Yūji, and herself, all naked as newborns and sharing a bed. All she could do was scream, alarming the girls as they all jumped in a startle.

"What happened?!"

"Where's the fire!?"

"Is it a little chilly in here?"

Kurumu blinked as she turned to see Yūji as he was naked. She then looked down to see that she was naked too, grinning, as she hugged her brother and beamed, "Yahoo~! I slept with Yūji!"

"Kurumu...cut it out...mfff!" Yūji tried to demand as his face was buried in his sister's bare cleavage.

"We slept with Onii-chan...too," Mizore smiled as she regarded Yuki.

"We did," Yuki blushed, the memory of their joint night still fresh in her mind. "We gave him...our bodies~"

"That was so much fun," Michiru sighed dreamily, "He held me so tight...with his big, strong arms~"

"I don't think...I can feel my legs," Misato giggled.

"That...was sex," Milly sighed, "That may have been my first time, but it was...amazing~"

"Need I remind you all we're all sharing a bed, _naked_," Hana reminded with a frown.

"Oh, come on, Hana," Misato rebutted, "You liked it too. I remembered how loud you screamed when he plowed that tight ass of yours!"

"Mi-Misato...!"

"Come on, you don't have to hide it anymore," she argued, "You've been watching Yūji ever since you two met."

Yūji was curious about what Misato was talking about, looking to Hana and hoping for an explanation. "Hana?"

Hana sighed as she crawled over the other girls until she reached Yūji, the boy patting his stomach, and she blushed as she lay on top of him as they were face to face. "I'm sorry if I...overreacted," she apologized. "I...just didn't expect to make any relations with anyone. I'm used to being alone, focusing on my studies and such... But then I met you, Yūji. You were the first one to actually talk to me as just a person before we became friends. We even got along and worked well together, despite our differences. What I'm trying to say is...I...I love..." She was silenced by a kiss from Yūji, her eyes widening for a moment, before relaxing in his grasp and kissing him back as the others watched.

Yūji released her and caressed Hana's cheek, smiling, as he said, "I got it, Hana. You don't have to say it if it's too much right now. I feel the same way." He looked to the others, "I feel the same way about all of you, no joke. It was just...kinda hard to come out and actually say it."

"And we love Yū-kun," Michiru beamed.

"Well, I've loved Yūji long before he met you guys," Kurumu bragged.

"Save the superiority complex for later," Mizore demanded, "We should think about what to do next."

The gears started turning in her head as Milly got an idea. "We can start a harem!"

This got Yūji's attention and he stared at his President questionably. "Seriously?"

"Think about it: We all love you, we can all get along (with practice), you're a good person that cares about us, and you're great in bed," she listed.

"...That last part doesn't technically count," Yūji sweatdropped.

"Don't sweat the small stuff," she dismissed. "So, what do you all think?"

"Doesn't sound too bad," Misato shrugged, "I win since I still get to have fun."

"And we all stay happy," Michiru beamed.

"And think of all the fun we can have together," Yuki smirked as she regarded her sisters.

"So, can we get something to eat already? I'm starving," Misato requested.

"You can just guzzle down Yūji," Kurumu remarked, "You had no problem with that last night."

"Damn straight," she grinned.

"...Anyway, how about I go make breakfast," Yūji offered.

"I'll help," Kurumu volunteered.

Erza was the last to wake as she stirred from her sleep, moaning and groaning as she couldn't shake off her headache. "...What's going on?" She blinked when she saw everyone naked, then she saw her brother naked, and then she looked down to see that she was naked too before she turned red.

Yūji blushed and chuckled, "Ehehehe... Hey, Aneki..."

* * *

"Yo~" Yūji called as he and his sisters came home. He let out a yawn while the girls were simply glowing with smiles. Erza, however, was looking rather downcast and distraught as she just muttered to herself

"Onii-chan!" Maria beamed as she jumped into Yūji's arms.

Yūji kissed Maria's cheek lovingly, calling Maria, "My little Princess~," holding her close as he walked inside.

Shinichi was on the couch, watching TV as he looked over his shoulder to see his cousin and the girls come in. So, I'm assuming you all had a _very_ happy New Year," he remarked

"Yes, yes we did," Yūji nodded before looking to Erza, "Well, most of the girls are taking it better than others."

"Hope Kaa-chan doesn't catch wind of this," said Shinichi. "Knowing her, she'll pump you for information so she can have inspiration for her next book."

"Not like that'd be a problem for me," Yūji shrugged, "The only issue would be my memory since I was drunk. So I'm guessing the others left after the party?"

"They did," said Shinichi. "So did I. I told Aunt Aki and Uncle Yusei you were spending the night at the Student Council office."

"Wonderful," Yūji sighed. He knew he was gonna hear from them soon.

"So, I'm guessing that last night is just an example of how interesting this New Year will be," said Shinichi.

"Yeah, odds are a lot of last night is gonna be happening," Yūji nodded.

"Odds are, you're right, Aniki," Shinichi agreed.

"UU~! UU~! Happy New Year!" Maria cheered before cackling, "Kihihihihihihi!"

_To Be Continued..._

* * *

**KRB: NEW YEAR'S! Sorry for posting this kinda late. Wanted to try and post this on New Year's, but it didn't happen.**


	13. Romantic Rendezvous

Tail 13: Romantic Rendezvous

Nekozawa Hana , Vice-President of the Neo Domino High School's student council was hard at work as usual. This time, however, it had nothing to do with school or council business. Rather, what she was doing had more to do with personal curiosity and concerns than anything else.

Hana was at her computer studying a video she'd found on YouTube. It only got her attention as it had gotten over 5,000,000 views in such a short time. Someone had gotten a video of the two SHADOW Mech-Beasts fighting the Kamen Riders at the mall. As she watched carefully, it seemed that Liger and Black Rider were working together in a way that suggested they were very familiar with each other. She knew Yūji was Liger but she didn't know who the Black Rider was.

What she did know was that not too long ago he'd been part of the SHADOW group that attacked the Halloween Party before, rather unexpectedly and without explanation, joining Yūji to fight them. The video, unfortunately, had no audio. She then enlarged the image and paused it, focusing her eyes on the black-clad Rider with red eyes.

"Who are you…?" she wondered. Who was the Black Rider? Yūji seemed to know but should she ask him? And if she did would he give her an honest answer? Well, she would have to ask him, wouldn't she?

* * *

"Achoo!" Shinichi sneezed.

"You OK?" Yūji asked.

"Yeah," said Shinichi. "OK, let's resume." The two of them were standing across from each other in the middle of a training dojo. They were dressed in their gym clothes too. As they needed to fight against SHADOW's Mech-Beasts, they needed to be at the top of their game which required constant training. If they could improve their combat prowess outside their armors, then when they used their suits their combat capabilities would be amplified.

The two cousins bowed at each other before entering fighting stances. Eyes narrowed and filled with determination, the two yelled and charged at each other.

* * *

The next day, school was out as the final bell rang. Yūji stretched and yawned, having to endure hours of lectures. They even had a ton of homework to do.

"Dammit, I hate homework," whined Yokoshima. "Almost as much as I hate tests, quizzes and exams."

"Oh, just suck it up, you big baby," Daichi retorted. He turned to Yūji and said, "Hey, Yūji. Grab your cousin or we'll be late for the meeting."

"Gotcha," said Yūji as he exited the classroom to get to his cousin's classroom.

* * *

"He's not here?" asked Yūji as he came to Shinichi's classroom. He'd come to fetch his cousin only to find that he wasn't there.

"As soon as the final bell rang he left," said Yui. "I think he mentioned something about going to the library. He seemed to be in a bit of a hurry."

"The library?" Yūji asked. "Does he have library duty or something?"

"Not that I know of," Yui shrugged.

"Well, thanks," said Yūji before he went on to find his cousin at the library.

* * *

Yūji entered the school library and looked around for his cousin. The library was huge and had a lot of books of various topics and subjects, all arranged in rows and rows of shelves. It was like navigating through a maze.

"Fortunately, I have this App on my phone to find _his _phone," said Yūji. "Let's see, where is he?" It showed a map of the library and he had it set to detect Shinichi's phone within the vicinity. "OK, left, left, right, forwards, left, right, forwards and left." He smiled, "Gotcha." He looked up, "Yo, Shin, we have to…" His greeting trailed off as he froze.

He'd found his cousin, embracing a girl, and kissing her. Shinichi realized they weren't alone and looked up. The girl he was with saw Yūji, blushed, gasped then fainted.

"Nodoka-chan!" Shinichi cried.

"This is a bad time, isn't it?" Yūji asked sheepishly.

"Ya think?" Shinichi glared. Now, he could tell his cousin to go away but now that his secret was out he had no choice but to explain himself.

* * *

The girl-Nodoka-was carried by Shinichi to the infirmary. He put her in one of the beds and pulled the blanket over her, making sure that she was comfortable. He gently caressed her hair before exiting to speak to his cousin.

"OK, say what you wanna say," stated Shinichi. He didn't want to beat around the bush and wanted Yuji to say what he wanted to say, here and now.

"Is there something you want to tell me?" Yūji asked, grinning from ear-to-ear. "Who was that girl anyway? Your girlfriend."

"Obviously I wasn't kissing her for no reason, and her name's Miyazaki Nodoka," Shinichi answered. "She's a girl from the classroom next to mine."

"She's cute," remarked Yūji. "So, how did you two meet?"

"She's in the Library Club and helps out around the library. The day we met I was assigned library duty with her," Shinichi explained. "At first she was really shy…she kept her distance and she was really quiet when I talked to her."

"OK, so how did that turn into what I saw?" Yūji asked. He wasn't one to meddle in his cousin's affairs but this was just too juicy for him to resist. His own cousin had gotten himself a girlfriend and he hadn't even known about it.

"One day, she was stacking up books but she slipped off the ladder and fell. Fortunately, I was nearby when it happened. I caught her before she hit the floor and she thanked me. That's when I noticed her eyes. Normally her bangs cover them but they were the most beautiful eyes I've ever seen…" Shinichi sighed.

"Go on," Yūji prompted.

"Since then she's been more open and well we talked a lot, about books mainly," said Shinichi. He loved to read too, but he wasn't a bookworm.

"Like Shiori-ma's books?" Yūji asked.

"No," said Shinichi abruptly. "Not _those _kinds of books, and I haven't told her about Kaa-chan's books because I'm afraid she'll freak out. Her favorite books are the Harry Potter series and Lord of the Rings. Basically, anything from the fantasy-adventure genre, with some romance…" Shinichi rubbed the back of his head.

"So, how long has this been going on?" Yūji asked.

"Since mid-November," Shinichi confessed. Yūji's eyes widened in shock at the revelation.

"Why the hell didn't I know about this?" Yūji questioned. "And how long were you planning to keep this a secret?"

"Well, first of all, it helps that our dates are secret and I always go out on the weekend to meet up with her. Then we also meet up frequently online in a VRMMORPG (Virtual Reality Multi-Mass Online Role-Playing Game)."

"Ah, those things," Yūji nodded. He never could get into those kinds of games. They blurred the line between fantasy and reality a little too well.

"And your attention has been on other matters, like SHADOW," added Shinichi.

"So, when were you planning on introducing her to us?"

"I'm taking things slow," Shinichi said. He defended, "Look, she's very shy and emotionally fragile. I don't want to bombard her right now. She's new at this and so am I."

"I understand," Yūji nodded, "I'm not going to tell Shiori-ma about your new girlfriend."

Shinichi smiled, thankful for his cousin's consideration. "Thanks, Aniki."

"You're gonna tell her." Shinichi paled before Yūji added, "Anyway, I'm gonna head to the Student Council Meeting. I'll just tell them you've got other _duties _to perform." Yūji winked. "Take care of her."

"Of course," said Shinichi as he went back into the infirmary to keep Nodoka company until she woke up. She was important to him, a precious person like his family. If things turned out well maybe she could be part of his family. However, it was still too early and right now he was happy with the way things were and wanted to see how they would turn out. Not all teenage relationships lasted but he was feeling optimistic about this.

* * *

The following day, Shinichi, Yuki and Yūji were conversing on their way to the bus stop. The bus would be arriving in a quarter hour which gave them just enough time for small talk which could always resume while riding the bus.

"So, I told Kaa-chan and Tou-chan about Nodoka-chan," said Shinichi.

"Who's Nodoka-chan?" Yuki asked. Shinichi hadn't mentioned anything about a girl named Nodoka before so she was curious.

"Shin's girlfriend," Yūji grinned.

Yuki gasped and turned to look at Shinichi, "_You_ have a girlfriend!? Since when?"

"Mid-November," answered Shinichi.

"He's been keeping it a secret," said Yūji. "Like he's embarrassed of us or something."

"I'm not," Shinichi denied. He was no way embarrassed of his family, despite their quirks and eccentricities. "Nodoka-chan is just really delicate and you have to admit that every member of our family is intense. I don't want to expose her to too much too soon." He was mostly referring to their uncles, Crow and Jack.

"So, what did Shiori-ma and Shotaro-pa say?" Yuki asked.

"They want to meet her," Shinichi said, cringing.

"You don't sound too pleased," remarked Yūji.

"Because I know how it will go down..." His mind began to drift towards his imagination...

_"You write books, Mrs. Banabara?" Nodoka asked._

_"Oh, yes. Here's one of them," said Shiori as she handed Nodoka a book. Nodoka read a few lines, turning red as her blood rushed up to her face, before she fainted. Steam was rising out of her head as her eyes became swirly._

"You know, I can see your point," agreed Yuki as she sweat-dropped. Shiori wasn't very modest and would show off her books when given a chance to convert others into appreciating her brand of writing.

"I bet she'd love Nodoka," Yūji assured, "She's adorable!"

"I'm glad you think so and I know Kaa-chan's very accepting, but I'm just afraid that Nodoka-chan will get scared off," said Shinichi worriedly. He didn't want to lose such a good thing in his life, ever. The thought of it hurt.

Yūji grabbed Shinichi's shoulder and explained, "Just keep her at a distance from Uncle Jack and Crow; they have a better chance of scaring the daylights out of her than Shiori-ma."

Shinichi agreed, "You're right. Those two make so much noise, especially Uncle Jack."

"The bus is here," Yuki alerted.

"Right on time, at always."

* * *

The routine at school was as usual, with classes, lectures and homework assignments being passed up. Reprieve came when the lunch bell rang.

At lunch, Shinichi hadn't come to join the Student Council, prompting Milly to ask, "Where's Shinichi?" Shinichi always joined them for lunch ever since he joined.

"Oh, he's around," Yūji answered, "Some of the girls from his class asked him for some help so he was gonna hang with them for a while. I can always call him if we need him."

"That's pretty convenient," Hana remarked, "Just like how he vanished when those things attacked the mall."

"Wait...the mall?" Yūji remembered, "What do you mean, Hana...?"

"Your Aunt Carly took pictures of the Christmas event," said Hana. "Also, I was looking up YouTube and saw videos posted on what happened." She turned on her tablet and played the video for all of them to see. "Here's one where your cousin was seen as an elf. Then, when the chaos started, he just runs off. Then, shortly afterwards the Black Rider shows up."

Yūji froze as he recalled the battle, remembering how those icy Mech-Beasts escaped. "...Oh...yeah, I remember that," he recalled, "He was with me when that happened. We were helping getting the kids to a safe place..."

"And then you, as Liger, appeared to assist the Black Rider. Oddly enough you seem to work well together, like you've known each other for years," said Hana suspiciously.

"Who? Me? Nah...we're just cool," Yūji explained nervously as he started to sweat a little. "He's a cool dude..."

"So, who is he then?" Hana asked. "You must know his identity."

"Hana-chan, what is this about?" Michiru asked.

"I just find it odd that someone who worked for SHADOW could just defect in a matter of moments. During that Halloween Party he looked ready to kill us like those two other robots before switching sides," said Hana. "So, why is Yūji so willing to trust him so wholeheartedly?"

"Yeah, you're right," Daichi agreed before he asked, "Yūji, how can you be sure this guy isn't gonna stab you in the back? What if he's just pretending to switch sides so he can finish you off himself?"

"Because..." Yūji looked between his friends. He felt he was getting backed into a corner, and it was time to pull another lie out of his ass. "He likes the Resident Evil series."

"...What?" Hana questioned incredulously at Yūji's random response.

Yūji nodded, "Yup. I like Resident Evil, he likes Resident Evil; we have a mutual agreement in that Resident Evil is the best horror game franchise in the fucking universe."

"So, you're basing your trust in him...on a_ video game_!?" Hana almost yelled.

"To be fair, it's a classic game series," Yūji tried to support. "And besides, he doesn't like talking about how he started working for SHADOW. He's still dealing with trauma issues. So sometimes we try playing video games so he can relieve his stress. With games like Halo, Mortal Kombat, Soul Calibur, Anarchy Reigns... He loves video games, no joke!"

"That makes sense," said Yokoshima. "Bad guys don't waste time playing games."

Hana just glared at Yūji with narrowed eyes, '_You're hiding something, Yūji. There's something about this Black Rider you don't want us to know about. But mark my words, I will find the truth._'

_Goddamit...Hana's getting close! How the fuck is she so good at figuring shit out!? I've spent a good portion of the year trying to figure out the shit she does and not a damn thing comes up! It's like...she's a ninja or something!_

"I'll drop the matter," said Hana. '_For now_,' she added mentally. She needed to gather more evidence and once she had enough, Yūji would have to confess the truth. With no way out, he would have to crack and spill what he knew.

"Boy, sure feeling the tension here," Misato spoke up as she looked between Yūji and Hana. "Sounds like you two need some _private time_."

"Not now, Misato," Yūji said.

"What? You make it sound as if you're not horny," she defended, "Just go spend some time in the bathroom together; like for the whole lunch break or something."

Hana blushed fiercely as she sputtered, "M-Misato! That's obscene!"

"What? You make sound as if you're not," she regarded, "And besides, you've done it before. So there shouldn't be a problem."

* * *

It was after school and Yūji needed to speak to Shinichi urgently. Fortunately, no one was around as they were heading back home.

"So, yeah, Hana suspects us," Yūji concluded his explanation as he and Shinichi were walking home together with Yuki.

"She always did seem like the smart one," Shinichi remarked, not looking alarmed.

"What should we do?" Yuki asked. "Onii-sama told them about him being Liger."

"And you asked us to keep your identity a secret," Yūji said to Shinichi.

"If Nekozawa-sempai suspects, then there's only one thing you can do," said Shinichi before he paused, "...You tell them the truth." This caught Yūji and Yuki by surprise, knowing that Shinichi would want to keep his identity secret, and yet his cousin would want him to reveal the truth.

"Shin?"

"Are you sure?" Yuki asked her cousin. If this information was revealed, who knew how the Student Council would react. Black Rider had not made a very good first impression that Halloween.

Shinichi nodded. "Tell them. As much as I want to keep my secret but I don't want you to lose your friends over me." He was happy that his cousin had such good friends, and he didn't want him to risk losing their friendship because of him.

"Shin..." Yūji uttered.

Shinichi waved it off, "It's fine, since you've known them longer than they've known me. I don't want you losing your friends and their trust over me."

Seeing how content he was, Yūji couldn't help but accept Shinichi's explanation; no matter how much he wanted to protect Shin. "Alright then..." He just hoped they could accept his explanation. He just needed some time to think of how to break the news.

"I'll help you if it troubles you," volunteered Shinichi.

In order to change the mood, Yuki spoke up, "So, Shin, did you manage to ask your _girlfriend _if she'd like to meet your family?"

"I did, and she was actually happy," said Shinichi. He was quite concerned. Nodoka was just so blissfully ignorant about his family. He'd just told her the basics and not the details.

"You should ask Shiori-ma to tone it down," Yuki suggested. Shinichi gave Yuki a look.

"_Tone it down_?" he repeated. "You do realize you're referring to my mother, your aunt. As talented as she is as a writer, toning things down isn't her forte."

"Hope Shotaro-pa is there then," said Yūji. He was one of the only two men that could actually help Shiori control her impulses, the other being her brother, Yūsei.

"Me too. If there's one person who can keep Kaa-chan under control it's Tou-chan."

* * *

Days went by and the weekend approached quickly. Yūji still hadn't told his friends about Shinichi being the Black Rider, respecting his cousin's secret while at the same time trying to find a way to break the news to them. How was he supposed to tell them that his cousin was the same Black Rider who had attacked their Halloween Party before teaming up with him under mysterious circumstances?

He decided to ask his parents, Uncle Jack and Uncle Crow for advice.

Here were their piece of advice:

JACK: "Tell them straight out and don't be scared of the results!"

CROW: "Just tell them! You guys have been friends since high school started, right? They'll understand!"

YUSEI & AKI: "Have faith in your friends."

At the same time, he was concerned about how the meeting between Shinichi's girlfriend and his parents was going to go. Shotaro was mellow compared to his wife, Shiori. But one problem at a time. First, to explain things to his friends in a way they could understand and not reject Shinichi. He would have to start with Hana.

Pulling out his cell phone, he speed-dialled Hana and put it against his ear. He waited for her to answer.

"_Hello?_" she responded.

"Hey, Hana-chan. Wanna go out somewhere? We need to talk. OK, I'll pick you up then, in an hour. Gotcha. Bye." He ended the call. "Well, time to face the music."

* * *

An hour later, after Yūji picked up Hana, they went to her favorite Goth Cafe, The Tell-tale Heart. It was her favorite establishment as she could be alone with her thoughts and enjoy the calm and soothing atmosphere. The smoke around them was incense, used for relaxation purposes. This place did serve coffee but they also served herbal tea. There was also a shelf of books filled with books with dark and macabre content in the corner. The place did seem dark and dreary but Hana liked it. None of her friends understood but they didn't have a problem with it.

Hana and Yūji sat at her usual table and had cups of coffee sitting in front of them.

"So, this was sudden," remarked Hana as she traced her coffee cup. "You just asked me out without warning. It's just fortunate for you that I wasn't busy."

"Yeah, this was kinda important," said Yūji. "I actually spoke to Black Rider and he gave me permission to tell you about him." Hana cocked her eyebrow with interest.

"Did he now?"

"Yeah, I know, it's crazy but he values my friendship with you guys over this and I swore to keep his identity a secret for specific reasons..."

"And now he changed his mind," said Hana. "Because of our friendship." Yūji nodded. She sat back and crossed her arms, "OK, tell me the story. The true story."

"It's a pretty long story."

"I have time."

And so he told her, the summarised yet detailed story.

* * *

Nodoka lived with Saotome Haruna and another girl named Ayase Yue at Neo Domino High's girls' dorm. Not all the students were locals and came from out of town so dormitories were prepared for their comfort and so that they would have someplace to stay while in the city. It was cheaper and more affordable than renting an apartment.

Shinichi arrived at the door to pick Nodoka up, dressed up in a black leather jacket and a turtleneck sweater. He also wore jeans and black boots. Around his neck was a red scarf as it was still winter and chilly. He knocked on the door, three times, and waited. The door opened and there stood Nodoka in a pink sweater and a denim skirt that went down to just above her knees. She also wore black leggings. Her bangs still covered her eyes but her fringes parted a bit so he could see them for a moment. She was just so cute that he couldn't help but go _'squee' _on the inside.

"Ah, Shinichi-kun," she greeted, her cheeks pink. "You came to pick me up already?"

"Yeah," he said, rubbing his arm nervously. "Are you ready?"

"Let me grab my coat and train pass," she said.

"We're not taking the train," he told her. "I have my bike waiting down at the parking lot."

"Your bike?" Her eyes widened and her bangs parted so he could see her reaction. "A bicycle?"

"My _motorbike_," he clarified. "Are you OK with that?"

"Yes, yes I am!" Nodoka nodded, blushing. If they were going to be riding a motorbike, that meant that she would be holding him around the waist. It would be very intimate. Oh, they had kissed but always in private. They've never done anything like hugging in public. It was just too embarrassing for her.

She went and grabbed her coat, a scarf and put on her winter gloves before taking his hand in hers. She smiled shyly at him as he smiled back nervously before they both of them walked down the corridor towards the elevator.

Nodoka's roommates poked their heads out of the doorway. Haruna called out with a playfull wink, "Bring her back by 10:00 PM, mister!"

"And take care of her," added Yue, a short girl with very long hair.

"I will," Shinichi promised.

* * *

"And there you have it," Yūji finished with a sigh. He studied Hana's expression for her reaction to his story. She stared at him, studying him critically, then picked up her coffee cup and took a sip. She put down the coffee cup, leaned back in her seat, and crossed her arms. Her lips were curled in a serious frown, her eyes were narrowed, and her brows were furrowed. She didn't seem too pleased. '_Yeah, I'm pretty fucked right now_,' Yūji thought in despair. No doubt she was pissed off beyond belief.

Hana finally spoke after some awkward silence, "You know, this explains everything. It does explain how your cousin, who went missing two years ago, suddenly reappeared not long after that night on Halloween. It also explains how you could work together so fluidly."

Yūji blinked, confused as he didn't hear any yelling from her. It was the very first thing he expected Hana to do since he was keeping this from her and the others for so long. "That's it...? You believe me?!"

"I can tell if someone's lying," said Hana. "I've been studying human body language ever since I learned how to walk so I can tell when someone's lying. I'm a bit disappointed that you couldn't trust us with this information before, but I can understand your reasoning since Shinichi is your cousin. After all he'd been through you would want to protect him. He's family and you didn't want him to be hurt emotionally by our rejection. I'm still disappointed that you couldn't trust us but this is his secret after all. He didn't have enough reason to trust us." She took another sip.

Yūji grinned as he took his cup, "I so earned this," he said before drinking his coffee, taking gulps before he put it down. "And for the record, I didn't keep it a secret because I couldn't trust you guys, Hana. I kept it a secret because I was scared. I was scared you guys would be terrified of Shin and kick him out; scared that you wouldn't wanna talk to me ever again for not telling the truth. Plus I didn't know how to explain things right before, so I needed time to get my head together."

"I wouldn't reject Banabara-kun over such a matter," Hana said reasonably. "He was just a puppet of SHADOW so he can't be held responsible for his actions. He was as much as a victim of cruel circumstances as you and your family were. Nothing more."

Yūji could only laugh a little as he relaxed in his seat, "It's official; you're the most understanding girl I've ever met, Hana."

"I have to be level-headed. Our group does require someone with a cool head to deal with our president's impulsivity," she reasoned.

"That's true," Yūji chuckled. Milly was impulsive and eccentric so it took a very special kind of person to work alongside and make sure she focused on her duties as Student Council President.

"Now, all we need to do is to break the news to everyone and there's no real way of telling how they'd react," said Hana. "I know Daichi might feel betrayed."

"Gotta have faith then," Yūji smiled. He was glad he went to his family for advice before this. Everything was working out like they'd said. "So...wanna go somewhere else after this? It's our first date, after all."

Hana glanced at the stage and said, "Actually, there's something I need to do first." She got up and walked to the stage and stood behind the microphone.

"Hana?" he blinked. Hana then began to recite:

_"Secrets can destroy bonds_  
_They say truth can set us free_  
_What a deception"_

She got off stage and walked back to their table and sat back down. Yūji could only stare before clapping lightly for her. "That was pretty cool! You really do get inspiration from anything, huh?"

"Haiku are not that difficult," she shrugged. "They don't have to rhyme. The only restriction is the pattern. 5 syllables for the first line, 7 syllables in the second line, and 5 syllables in the last line."

"...Yeah, I doubt I could think of them on the spot," Yūji said. "But, I bet you have tons."

"Sometimes I write them in private."

"You should show them to me sometime."

"I'll think about it."

* * *

Nodoka loved the rush as she was holding tight to Shinichi's waist as they sped along traffic. The speed made the wind blow past her. It was intense and magnificent. She at first felt nervous when it started but now she just couldn't have enough. It felt so great.

"We're here," he said suddenly, cutting off her thoughts.

"Huh?" Nodoka blinked. They had stopped? Why had she not noticed it before? He parked the bike and he helped her off. She removed her helmet and smoothen her hair.

"Will this be OK?" She was nervous about meeting his parents. According to Haruna and Yue this was a huge step in any relationship. She would need to make a good impression to receive their acceptance in their son's life.

"Don't worry," said Shinichi. "They'll love you. Just relax..._and try not to faint_." He whispered the last past. The two rode the elevator up to his floor.

"The Tops is really grand," she said as they exited the elevator and walked down the corridor.

"Yeah, it is," he agreed.

"So, you told me your mother's a writer but you never told me what kind of books she writes," said Nodoka.

"Romance," he said quickly as they stood before the door. "Just don't freak out," he cautioned. She was confused. He knocked on the door and waited. He heard footsteps, very fast footsteps. The door swung open and there stood his mother.

"Okaerinasai, Shinichi!" Shiori yelled out and pulled her son into a hug. She released her son then saw Nodoka. She appraised her and Shinichi could tell what was going through his mom's head through her eyes.

_'Hm...she's pretty slender. Not very big in the bust area, but she's not bad-looking at all. Very cute. The bangs covering her eyes make her look mysterious. She looks shy too,'_ thought Shiori. Shinichi had told her that Nodoka had a timid and delicate personality so it would be a good idea to tone down the intensity. "So, you must be my little boy's girlfriend," said Shiori.

Nodoka bowed and introduced herself, "I'm Miyazaki Nodoka, Banabara-sensei." As Shiori was an author, 'sensei' was a title of respect. "It's nice to meet you. Shinichi-kun has told me a lot about you."

"Did he now?" Shiori smiled, looking at Shinichi. "Good things, I hope." She invited, "Come on, don't just stand there. Come inside and make yourselves at home. I'll make you kids some hot cocoa."

Shinichi looked relieved. So far things were going smoothly. He just hoped that this day progressed with as little awkwardness as possible.

* * *

Yūji and Hana were at the movies, watching a Horror film with others in the room as they screamed at different parts. Yūji could only snicker at how childish some of them could be. He and Hana were sitting in the far back, holding hands as they sat together. Their fingers were intertwined and she tightened her grip, with Yūji noticing her shaking a little.

"Don't tell me you're scared," Yūji whispered.

"Excited is more accurate," she replied, "Horror movies always get my blood pumping..."

_'Wait a minute,'_ Yūji thought, _'Didn't Shiori-ma mention something like this...?'_

SHIORI:_ "Remember, Yūji-kun, while romance films make girls happy, sometimes horror movies can get them super horny! It's because they get excited during the movie and they want to release all that pent-up excitement when the movie's over. So you have to be able to tend to her when that time comes."_

That was what Shiori had told him before, a couple of years ago, but he never imagined that it would actually happen. "Um...Hana..." Yūji tried to call as he looked to her, blinking as she was staring at him. Her eyes looked a little heavy and he could tell she was blushing a little since his eyes had adjusted to the darkness. "You OK...?"

"Yes...I'm fine," she recoiled as she tried to relax, regulating her breath as she slowly came down from that adrenaline rush. _'That was close... For some reason, I wanted to kiss him in public,'_ she thought, '_No, I have to stay calm... I can't get emotional now. It's just a date! Just a date...'_

* * *

Shinichi, Nodoka and Shiori were seated at the kotatsu with cups of hot cocoa in front of them. Each cup of the brown and sweet beverage had marshmallow in them.

"So, my son told me you both met at the library," said Shiori.

"We did," Nodoka confirmed.

"What did you think of him? I hope he made a good first impression," said Shiori.

"He was very nice," smiled Nodoka. "I'm not very good around boys so I had trouble speaking to him at first, but after he saved me I gave him a chance."

"It was no big deal," Shinichi excused.

"If I had fallen on the floor I could've broken my legs or worse," said Nodoka. "You saved me, Shinichi-kun. I will always be grateful." He blushed and smiled and Shiori smiled.

"So, since you're in the Library Committee, I assume you love to read," said Shiori.

"Yes, and I want to write my own novel someday," said Nodoka. Shiori's smile widened.

"Ano, Kaa-chan, where's Tou-chan?" Shinichi asked. He was hoping his father would be here so he could introduce Nodoka to her too and hopefully his father could keep his mother under control.

"He was called to work today," Shiori sighed. "Honestly, I know he works in Interpol, but can't they give him the weekend off to meet his son's girlfriend?"

"It's OK, Kaa-chan. You know that Tou-chan works hard to protect us," said Shinichi.

"Your father really works in Interpol?" asked Nodoka, surprised by this bit of information.

"Yeah, and sometimes he can be gone weeks or months because of an assignment or case but he always makes it back even if it's just for a short time," Shinichi said. "That's all that matters."

"But it gets lonely in bed without him so I need to entertain myself," shrugged Shiori. Shinichi began to panic, hoping Nodoka wouldn't catch on what his mother was implying. He remembered finding her collection of 'toys' years ago. "Anyway, I'm going to grab some cookies in the kitchen." Shiori stood up and went to the kitchen.

"Your mother seems nice," said Nodoka.

"She always is," remarked Shinichi and he smiled, "She also seems to like you." Nodoka smiled, glad that she was making a good impression. He took a sip of hot cocoa.

"I would like to read one of your mother's books," said Nodoka.

"Oh, she keeps them in her and Tou-chan's room," said Shinichi. "But why do you _really _need to read anything? I mean, you're just here to meet my mother." Nodoka thought that answer was odd. Shiori came back with a plate of cookies and sat down. "Enjoy."

"I need to use the bathroom," said Shinichi. "You ladies have fun while I'm gone." He left the two of them alone, relieved that things were going well.

_**Minutes later...**_

When he returned, he found Nodoka sitting up and with her face red and steam rising from the top of her head. He saw a book on the table in front of her, a book that was written by his mother. He froze in horror.

"Kaa-chan!"

"She found it under the kotatsu! I couldn't stop her in time!" Shiori explained herself. Shinichi opened the book and grimaced. It had _very _vivid illustrations and graphic descriptions. No wonder Nodoka had fainted. He slammed the book shut and handed it to his mother.

"Hide it," he told her. "Hide it, now."

* * *

Yūji and Hana's date continued after they left the movie theatre. She had enjoyed herself with him. And without the scrutiny of the others she could loosen up a little.

"We should've brought the others along, just to watch Daichi and Yokoshima scream," said Hana.

"You mean because of all the bats and snakes in that movie?" he asked.

"What do you think?" Hana smiled deviously. "I remember when Misato put a rubber snake on the door and when it fell on top of Daichi's head, he screamed and jumped right up to the ceiling."

"And then his head went through the ceiling," Yūji finished, "It's a miracle he didn't break his skull."

"I know," said Hana. "Then there was the time Michiru put a clockwork bat in Yokoshima's shoe locker."

"He screamed and flew back _through _three lockers before getting stuck in a wall..." Yūji couldn't hold it before he started laughing, holding his gut.

"And there was the time we tried to make Chiaki scream after he made his vow of silence. I swore I heard a squeak," Hana continued, laughing. "A big guy like that _squeaked_."

"Well, at least we got a sound out of him," Yūji grinned, "So far Misato's our hardest target... Dunno what the hell she could be afraid of."

"Only time will tell. We'll find out when she's the most vulnerable," said Hana. She then frowned in thought.

"Something wrong?" he asked.

"How did you feel when you found out your cousin was brainwashed by SHADOW?" she asked. "I assume it wasn't easy, emotionally I mean."

"Like you wouldn't believe," Yūji sighed. "I didn't know what the fuck was going on. Seeing Shin like that; his eyes about as blank as a chalkboard... He was kicking my ass a couple of times too. Shin was never a fighter! He didn't even like fighting! I thought I was going crazy when I first saw him in that suit..."

"But you had to fight him even if you didn't want to, to save him from himself and from SHADOW," Hana concluded.

"It's a good thing he got careless and rammed his fist into that power generator. Fried whatever implants they put in his brain to control him," said Yūji. "That was lucky for me."

"That power generator could've fried a lot more," said Hana. "You could've lost him."

"Yeah, you're right," Yūji sighed. It was nothing short of a miracle that Shinichi had survived. It was probably divine intervention that had given Shinichi a second chance at life. Whatever the reason, Yūji was glad to have his cousin back. "And there's no way I'm losing him to those assholes again."

"That's why you kept his identity a secret, for his sake," Hana noted. "You wanted to protect him."

"Just redeeming myself for when I couldn't protect him two years back," said Yūji.

"I doubt he'd blame you for what happened," Hana said. "There was nothing you could've done back then."

"You're wrong," he denied, butting his head against a nearby pole, "I had my bike; I wanted to take him to school to take his entrance exam. But he wanted to take that fucking bus and he got in that mess! I should've insisted, dammit!"

"There's no point blaming yourself. It has already happened. Regretting something like that now is pointless. You have him back now. That's what matters," she said.

"Yeah, you're right," Yūji sighed, "I just get pissed off so easily..."

"Of course. He's a member of your family. He's your cousin and as Yokoshima would say 'your brother from another mother'," Hana remarked. "You can only imagine what they did to him and you just want to pay them back while at the same time giving Shinichi as much as a normal life as you can."

"I don't even wanna imagine," he hissed before relaxing, smiling at Hana, "You're pretty amazing, Hana. Being so understanding and all. Not to mention you're one of the top brains in the school. And you still got time to pal around with a nut like me!"

"A genius shouldn't live a life of solitude," said Hana. "That's what Michiru taught me. Books and knowledge cannot comfort me like a hug from a good friend."

Yūji grinned as he spun around and hugged the goth, catching her by surprise as she blushed fiercely. "Ya mean like this, Hana-_chan_?!"

"Not in public!" she shoved him away. Yūji could only laugh; he always loved finding ways to get her riled up for fun.

* * *

Shinichi and Nodoka were in his room, alone, sitting on his bed. The awkwardness from earlier had passed. Shiori had hidden the book from earlier too.

"So..." Nodoka finally spoke. "Your mother writes _those _kinds of books."

"Yeah," he admitted, rubbing the back of his head in embarrassment.

"That explains why I never read any of her works before."

"Don't you live with Saotome-san?" he asked. He'd seen some of her artwork at Comiket and it was quite risque. Some of it was even Yaoi in nature and also had some Yuri content as well.

"Haruna-san likes to work in private, and sometimes she makes me read some of her work for my opinion and..."

"I've seen most of her work. She's _really _detailed," Shinichi added.

"Yes," Nodoka blushed. "She and your mother would get along."

"I pray she doesn't make me get a harem too," he hoped.

"A harem?" Nodoka blinked.

"Never mind. It's just Kaa-chan being Kaa-chan," said Shinichi. "Thank goodness she has Tou-chan around to rein her in."

"Growing up with a mother like that must've been interesting," said Nodoka.

"When I was 13, she gave me 'The Talk' using her books as study material," said Shinichi. "I knew more about sex than any kid in my school at that time. Trust me, 'interesting' is an understatement."

"S-s-sex!?" Nodoka stammered as her face went red as a ripe tomato.

Shinichi blushed at the implication, "No, I mean! Well, one day I want to, but not right now! Too soon! Still too soon!"

"Yes, we're still just starting out. We've only kissed a few times. We don't need to move too fast," she agreed. The two shared an awkward laugh together. She then moved her hand to rest on his.

"Shinichi-kun?" she asked.

"Yeah?" he responded.

"I love you," she said and she leaned in and gently pressed her lips against his. He smiled and kissed her back. This moment was nice and it was just so perfect in his mind. He was kissing his girlfriend and nothing could ruin this moment.

"_OK, now put your hand on her thigh!_"

Shinichi broke the kiss and blinked. "Did you hear _that_?" he asked.

"Hear what?" Nodoka asked.

"_Take off her bra! Take it off! Take it off!_"

"OK, I know I heard something that time," said Shinichi as he got off the bed. He then threw the door open and saw his mother fall in. "Kaa-chan?" He saw what she was wearing. "Are those X-Ray Goggles?"

"No!" Shiori stood up and hid the goggles behind her back. "They're not X-Ray Goggles! I'm not spying on you and your girlfriend!" She waved at Nodoka, "Hi, Nodoka-chan!" Shinichi narrowed his eyes at her. "Oh, well, I think I need to go and check up on Sho-chan! Bye!" And Shiori zipped away. Shinichi groaned. His mother was way too interested in his love life and not in a healthy way. And Sho-chan, his little brother, was at his aunt and uncle's house. They were babysitting him. He closed the door, sighing to himself. He knew something like this was going to happen.

"Who's Sho-chan?" Nodoka asked.

"My baby brother," he answered. He was amazed. "You're not surprised by what happened?"

"I live with Haruna-san," Nodoka said, as if that explained everything. Living with Haruna helped her to get used to things like this.

"Oh, right," he nodded. He went back to sit next to her. "Sorry my Kaa-chan's like that. She's just..."

"She cares," said Nodoka, smiling. "Of course she'd want to know what kind of girl is dating her son."

Shinichi's eyes watered. Nodoka was such a good girl. "I love you," he said.

_"Now, give her some tongue!"_

"KAA-CHAN, GET AWAY FROM MY DOOR!"

* * *

"Now that I think about it..." Hana trailed.

"What's up?" Yūji asked.

"I've never really met your parents," she finished, "None of us have."

"Ah...is that right," Yūji sweatdropped. He never did introduce his friends to his family. They were always busy with Student Council issues and his parents were always at work. Circumstances just didn't allow it at times. He'd introduced his sisters and cousin to his friends, but never his parents (let alone his retarded uncles). He suddenly cringed at the thought of introducing the girls to Jack or even Crow. "Well, maybe soon," he said, "My folks tend to be busy a lot, so I gotta get them to make some time for you and the others, you know?"

"Of course," she nodded, "It makes sense, given their occupations. They're always on call; 24/7."

"Sucks ass though," Yūji grumbled.

"They work hard to provide for you, and even when they're very busy it's not like you don't see them at all," she said.

Yūji smiled, "You know, I can always count on you to say the right thing."

* * *

Shinichi and Nodoka were down at the apartment's parking lot as he apologized profusely, "I'm so sorry about my mother! It's just this is the first time I brought a girl home and she gets excited and she just forgets to behave herself! I hope she didn't embarrass you."

Nodoka smiled and said, "I think she just acts like that because she's comfortable with me. That means she already likes me."

"I just wish she could show that she liked you and not act like that," he grumbled, glaring at the building. Nodoka turned his head to face her.

"It's fine, and I look forward to meeting the rest of your family," she smiled. Shinichi smiled back. Nodoka was so sweet and optimistic. He grabbed the spare helmet and handed it to her.

"Come on, let me give you a ride home," he offered.

* * *

The following day, Yūji, Yuki and Shinichi were riding on the bus to school.

Shinichi asked, "So, how was your date with Nekozawa-sempai?"

"I'll tell if you tell me how yours went," Yūji countered. Yuki was eager for details as well.

"It was fine, albeit a bit awkward because of Kaa-chan," Shinichi confessed, blushing a bit. "Nodoka-chan's used to such behavior because of her roommate, but it was still a bit embarrassing. Kaa-chan just doesn't understand boundaries."

"That's Shiori-ma for ya," Yūji smiled.

"OK, so, what about you?" Shinichi asked.

"Well, spending a day with just Hana-chan was nice," Yūji answered.

"Just nice?" Shinichi cocked an eyebrow.

"Well, I didn't embarrass myself, at least," Yūji shrugged.

"Glad that one of us had a date that didn't end up being embarrassing," said Shinichi.

"Shiori-ma was just being friendly," said Yuki. "And I think that after not seeing you for two years, just seeing you with a girlfriend makes her exceptionally happy."

"I hate it when you're right, Yuki-nee," sighed Shinichi.

The bus stopped and they exited before walking the rest of the waye way to school. The school was an important aspect of their normal lives. This was where they made friends, socialize, and formed bonds and connections. That was why they would protect the school and the city from SHADOW.

"I guess it's time I told the Student Council who I am," said Shinichi. "Think they'll be OK with knowing?"

"It'll be fine, and if not, then I'll make sure they understand," Yūji swore.

Shinichi smiled. Here was his cousin, a Kamen Rider, and the one who brought him back from the darkness. Shinichi looked ahead and spotted Nodoka. He smiled and Yuji urged him to greet his girlfriend. School, friends and a girlfriend would not have been possible without him.

_To Be Continued..._

* * *

**KAMEN RIDER BUSHIDO: OK, sorry this one took so long. Been dealing with stuff. And don't worry, the boring stuff will be getting done soon.**

**KAMEN RIDER CHROME: This was meant to be uploaded on Valentine's Day due to the romantic theme but we got sidetracked and distracted. Fortunately, we were able to publish this chapter for your reading pleasure. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as we did writing it. Another slice of life chapter and it's about love for the cousins. This shows Shinichi and Yuji's date. But, then we'll be going back to the action as the two Riders stop another SHADOW plot. Please, read and review and share your thoughts on the story. We'll be seeing you soon so bye!**


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